A Look Back at Footwear Retailer Stocks' Q3 Earnings: Genesco (NYSE:GCO) Vs The Rest Of The Pack

As footwear retailer stocks’ Q3 earnings season wraps, let's dig into this quarter's best and worst performers, including Genesco (NYSE:GCO) and its peers.

Footwear sales–like their apparel counterparts–are driven by seasons, trends, and innovation more so than absolute need and similarly face the bigger-picture secular trend of e-commerce penetration. Footwear plays a part in societal belonging, personal expression, and occasion, and retailers selling shoes recognize this. Therefore, they aim to balance selection, competitive prices, and the latest trends to attract consumers. Unlike their apparel counterparts, footwear retailers most sell popular third-party brands (as opposed to their own exclusive brands), which could mean less exclusivity of product but more nimbleness to pivot to what’s hot.

The 4 footwear retailer stocks we track reported a weak Q3; on average, revenues missed analyst consensus estimates by 1.8% while next quarter's revenue guidance was 3% below consensus. Inflation (despite slowing) has investors prioritizing near-term cash flows, and footwear retailer stocks have not been spared, with share prices down 11.3% on average, since the previous earnings results.

Genesco (NYSE:GCO)

Spanning a broad range of styles, brands, and prices, Genesco (NYSE:GCO) sells footwear, apparel, and accessories through multiple brands and banners.

Genesco reported revenues of $579.3 million, down 4.1% year on year, falling short of analyst expectations by 1.6%. It was a weak quarter for the company, with underwhelming earnings guidance for the full year.

Mimi E. Vaughn, Genesco’s Board Chair, President and Chief Executive Officer, said, “Following a good Back-to-School season, demand in October softened in an ongoing challenging operating environment, along with a delayed start to the fall selling season. Disruptions related to implementation of a new ERP system for our branded businesses added to the pressure, all leading to results that were below our expectations. Despite these headwinds, we were pleased to see sales trends within our Journeys business continue to sequentially improve, and Schuh and Johnston & Murphy deliver record third-quarter sales. In the meantime, we continued to inject Journeys’ product assortment with more of the newness and must-have items our customer desires, while also executing on our cost reduction and store closure plans.”

The stock is down 24.1% since the results and currently trades at $28.42.

Read our full report on Genesco here, it's free.

Best Q3: Boot Barn (NYSE:BOOT)

With a strong store presence in Texas, California, Florida, and Oklahoma, Boot Barn (NYSE:BOOT) is a western-inspired apparel and footwear retailer.

Boot Barn reported revenues of $374.5 million, up 6.5% year on year, falling short of analyst expectations by 0.7%. It was a weaker quarter for the company, with underwhelming earnings guidance for the next quarter.

Boot Barn scored the fastest revenue growth but had the weakest full-year guidance update among its peers. The stock is up 5.4% since the results and currently trades at $73.

Is now the time to buy Boot Barn? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it's free.

Weakest Q3: Designer Brands (NYSE:DBI)

Founded in 1969 as a shoe importer and distributor, Designer Brands (NYSE:DBI) is an American discount retailer focused on footwear and accessories.

Designer Brands reported revenues of $786.3 million, down 9.1% year on year, falling short of analyst expectations by 4.4%. It was a weak quarter for the company, with underwhelming earnings guidance for the full year.

Designer Brands had the weakest performance against analyst estimates and slowest revenue growth in the group. The stock is down 33.1% since the results and currently trades at $8.57.

Read our full analysis of Designer Brands's results here.

Shoe Carnival (NASDAQ:SCVL)

Known for its playful atmosphere that features carnival elements, Shoe Carnival (NASDAQ:SCVL) is a retailer that sells footwear from mainstream brands for the entire family.

Shoe Carnival reported revenues of $319.9 million, down 6.4% year on year, falling short of analyst expectations by 0.4%. It was a weak quarter for the company, with underwhelming earnings guidance for the full year.

Shoe Carnival scored the biggest analyst estimates beat and highest full-year guidance raise among its peers. The stock is up 6.7% since the results and currently trades at $25.82.

Read our full, actionable report on Shoe Carnival here, it's free.

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The author has no position in any of the stocks mentioned