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High living costs paired with sticky inflation has made
consumers tighten their budgets when it comes to discretionary
items, as they prioritize spending on groceries and food over
pricier home fragrances and personal care products.
Analysts have noted the company's product offerings have limited
room for growth and are not recession-resistant as they come at
high price points.
The retailer expects its 2023 net sales to fall by 2.5% to 4%,
compared with its previous forecast for a decline of 1.5% to
3.5%. Analysts on average expect a decline of 2.07%, according
to LSEG data.
The beauty and skincare firm also tightened its forecast for
annual adjusted earnings, expecting a profit of $2.90 to $3.10
per diluted share, versus a prior projection of $2.80 to $3.10.
Bath & Body Works earned 48 cents per share excluding one-time
items in the third quarter ended Oct. 28, topping analysts'
average estimate of 35 cents per share.
"Our performance in the quarter was marked by strong merchandise
margin improvement and the ongoing benefits of our cost
optimization initiatives," said CEO Gina Boswell.
The Ohio-based company's net sales fell 2.6% to $1.56 billion in
the quarter, in line with analysts' estimates.
(Reporting by Juby Babu in Bengaluru; editing by Milla Nissi)
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