Shares of Express Inc. EXPR, +23.67% soared 11.8% in premarket trading Thursday, after the apparel and accessories retailer reported that it swung to a fiscal third-quarter profit and same-store sales that beat expectations by wide margins, although net sales came up short. Net income for the quarter to Oct. 30 was $13.1 million, or 19 cents a share, after a loss of $90.3 million, or $1.39 a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding nonrecurring items, adjusted earnings per share came to 17 cents, while the average EPS estimate of two analysts surveyed by FactSet was 2 cents. Sales jumped 46.6% to $471.98 million, below the FactSet average estimate of $503.1 million, while cost of sales increased just 2.3% to boost gross margin to 33.2% from 4.3%. Same-store sales rose 46%, beating the FactSet average estimate of 30.2% growth. “Our results provide tangible evidence that the versatility, quality and value of our product is resonating with consumers,” said Chief Executive Tim Baxter. “I am confident that we will continue to deliver positive comparable sales and gross margin expansion versus 2019 in the fourth quarter.” The stock, which closed at a 6 1/2-month low on Wednesday, has tumbled 40.0% over the past three months but has rocketed 271.4% year to date, while the S&P 500 SPX, +0.86% has slipped 0.5% the past three months and gained 20.2% this year.
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