Buckle Q2 2026 Earnings Report

Buckle EPS Results

• Actual EPS: $0.89
• Consensus EPS: $0.83
• Beat/Miss: Beat by +$0.06
• One Year Ago EPS: $0.78

Buckle Revenue Results

• Actual Revenue: $305.74 million
• Expected Revenue: $292.61 million
• Beat/Miss: Beat by +$13.13 million
• YoY Revenue Growth: +8.30%

Buckle Announcement Details

• Quarter: Q2 2026
• Date: 8/22/2025
• Time: Before Market Opens
• Conference Call Date: Friday, August 22, 2025
• Conference Call Time: 10:00AM ET

Buckle (NYSE:BKE), Inc. is a specialty retailer of casual apparel, footwear and accessories for young men and women. The company is particularly known for its selection of denim, along with tops, bottoms, dresses, outerwear, shoes, jewelry and other fashion accessories. Buckle sells merchandise under a combination of national brands and proprietary labels.

The company operates retail stores across the United States and also sells products through its e-commerce platform. Its stores generally offer personalized customer service, including denim fitting and tailoring, and are designed to provide a lifestyle-oriented shopping experience. Buckle serves customers through both its physical store network and digital channels.

Buckle traces its origins to 1948, when it began as a clothing retailer known as Mills Clothing. The company later adopted the Buckle name as it expanded its focus on contemporary casual fashion. Buckle is headquartered in Kearney, Nebraska, and Dennis H. Eck serves as its chairman and chief executive officer.

Buckle Q2 2026 Earnings Call Transcript

Key Takeaways

• Positive Sentiment: Net sales rose 8.3% in Q2 to $305.7 million, with comparable store sales up 7.3% and online sales jumping 17.7%.
• Positive Sentiment: Gross margin expanded to 47.4% (+50 bps), SG&A dropped by 80 bps to 29.0% of sales, driving operating margin up to 18.4% from 17.1% a year ago.
• Positive Sentiment: The women’s segment saw sales surge 18.5%, led by a 20.5% increase in denim and a higher average denim price point of $85.35.
• Positive Sentiment: Kids business grew 23% year-over-year, and private label penetration increased to 43.5% of total sales, marking the tenth consecutive quarter of gains.
• Negative Sentiment: Units per transaction declined by 1.5% in the quarter, indicating potential pressure on transaction volume.

Presentation

[Operator]

Good morning. Thank you for standing by, and welcome to Buckle's Second Quarter Earnings Release Webcast. As a reminder, all participants are currently in a listen-only mode. A question-and-answer session will be conducted following the company's prepared remarks, with instructions given at that time. Members of Buckle's management on the call today are Dennis Nelson, President and CEO, Tom Heacock, Senior Vice President of Finance, Treasurer, and CFO, Adam Akerson, the Vice President of Finance and Corporate Controller, and Brady Fritz, Senior Vice President, General Counsel, and Corporate Secretary. Before beginning, the company would like to reiterate its policy of not providing future sales or earnings guidance. All forward-looking statements made on the call are pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially due to risks and uncertainties described in the company's SEC filings.

[Operator]

The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise these statements except as required by law. Additionally, the company does not authorize the reproduction or dissemination of transcripts or audio recordings of the company's quarterly conference calls without its express written consent. Any unauthorized reproductions or recordings of the calls should not be relied upon, as the information may be inaccurate. As a reminder, today's webcast is being recorded, and I'd now like to turn the conference over to your host, Thomas Heacock.

[Tom Heacock, CFO at The Buckle]

Good morning and thanks for joining us this morning. Our August 22nd, 2025, press release reported that net income for the 13-week second quarter ended August 2nd, 2025, was $45 million or $0.89 per share on a diluted basis, which compares to net income of $39.3 million or $0.78 per share on a diluted basis for the prior year's 13-week second quarter, which ended August 3rd, 2024. Year-to-date net income for the 26-week period ended August 2nd, 2025, was $80.2 million or $1.59 per share on a diluted basis, which compares to net income of $74.1 million or $1.48 per share on a diluted basis for the prior year's 26-week period ended August 3rd, 2024. Net sales for the 13-week second quarter increased 8.3% to $305.7 million, compared to net sales of $282.4 million for the prior year's 13-week second quarter.

[Tom Heacock, CFO at The Buckle]

Comparable store sales for the quarter increased 7.3% in comparison to the same 13-week period in the prior year, and online sales increased 17.7% to $43.6 million. Year-to-date net sales increased 6.1% to $577.9 million, compared to net sales of $544.9 million for the prior year's 26-week fiscal period. Comparable store sales for the year-to-date period increased 5.2% in comparison to the same 26-week period in the prior year, and our online sales increased 10.5% to $90 million. For the quarter, UPTs decreased approximately 1.5%, the average unit retail increased approximately 3%, and the average transaction value increased about 1.5%. Year-to-date UPTs decreased approximately 1%, the average unit retail increased approximately 2%, and the average transaction value increased approximately 1.5%. Gross margin for the quarter was 47.4%, a 50 basis point increase from 46.9% in the second quarter of 2024.

[Tom Heacock, CFO at The Buckle]

The current quarter margin expansion was the result of a 10 basis point increase in merchandise margin, along with 40 basis points of leverage buying, distribution, and occupancy expenses. Year-to-date gross margin was 47.1%, up 60 basis points from 46.5% for the same period in the prior year. The year-to-date increase was the result of a 30 basis point increase in merchandise margin, along with 30 basis points of leverage buying, distribution, and occupancy expenses. Selling, general, and administrative expenses for the quarter were 29% of sales, compared to 29.8% for the second quarter of 2024, and year-to-date SG&A was 29.8% of sales, compared to 29.9% for the same period in the prior year.

[Tom Heacock, CFO at The Buckle]

The second quarter decrease was due to a 65 basis point reduction related to non-recurring digital commerce investments made a year ago, a 45 basis point decrease in store labor-related expenses, and a 55 basis point decrease in other SG&A expense categories. These increases were partially offset by an 85 basis point increase in incentive compensation accruals. Our operating margin for the quarter was 18.4%, compared to 17.1% for the second quarter of fiscal 2024, and for the year-to-date period, our operating margin was 17.3%, compared to 16.6% for the same period last year. Income tax expense as a percentage of pre-tax net income for both the current and prior year fiscal quarter was 24.5%, bringing second quarter net income to $45 million for fiscal 2025, compared to $39.3 million for fiscal 2024.

[Tom Heacock, CFO at The Buckle]

Income tax expense as a percentage of pre-tax net income for both the current and prior year year-to-date periods was also 24.5%, bringing year-to-date net income to $80.2 million for fiscal 2025, compared to $74.1 million for fiscal 2024. Our press release also included a balance sheet as of August 2nd, 2025, which included the following, inventory of $142.5 million, which was up 8.4% from the same time a year ago and $349.6 million of total cash and investments. We ended the quarter with $158.8 million in fixed assets, net of accumulated depreciation. Our capital expenditures for the quarter were $12 million, and depreciation expense was $6.1 million. For the year-to-date period, capital expenditures were $23.4 million and depreciation expense was $12 million.

[Tom Heacock, CFO at The Buckle]

Year-to-date capital spending is broken down as follows, $20.2 million for new store construction, store remodels and technology upgrades, and $3.2 million for capital spending at the corporate headquarters and distribution center. During the quarter, we opened two new stores, completed four full store remodels, one of which was a relocation into a new outdoor shopping center, and closed one store, which brings our year-to-date counts to two new stores, nine full remodels, and three store closures. For the remainder of the year, we now anticipate opening four additional new stores, and completing 12 more full remodeling projects. The Buckle ended the quarter with 440 retail stores in 42 states, which is consistent with the store count as of a year ago. Now I'll turn it over to Adam Akerson, Vice President of Finance.

[Adam Akerson, VP of Finance and Corporate Controller at The Buckle]

Thanks, Tom, and good morning. Our women's business growth accelerated from the prior quarter, with merchandise sales increasing about 18.5% against the prior year, presenting approximately 47.5% of sales, which compares to 43.5% last year. Growth in the women's business continues to be anchored in the performance of our denim category. For the quarter, women's denim increased approximately 20.5%, with average denim price points increasing from $80.60 in the second quarter of fiscal 2024 to $85.35 in the second quarter of fiscal 2025. This AUR increase continues to be the result of strong growth in our Buckle [Black] label, which has outperformed the total denim business, along with strong growth of other higher price point national brands. Through the second quarter, there have been minimal AUR impacts as a result of tariffs.

[Adam Akerson, VP of Finance and Corporate Controller at The Buckle]

Complementing our strong women's denim selection, our merchandising team continued to evolve our strategy of customer-centric buying, sharpening their focus on key styles, brands, and trends, which has resulted in strong guest response. This strategy delivered double-digit growth in every category, with the exception of shorts, which still saw nice growth for the quarter. In total, average women's price points increased about 5%, from $43.15 to $45.35. On the men's side, we were pleased to see the business return to growth for the quarter, with merchandise sales up about 1.5% against the prior year, representing approximately 52.5% of total sales, which compares to 56.5% in the prior year. This growth was led by our men's denim category, which was up about 4.5% for the quarter. Average denim price points increased from $89.20 in the second quarter of fiscal 2024 to $89.30 in the second quarter of fiscal 2025.

[Adam Akerson, VP of Finance and Corporate Controller at The Buckle]

In other categories, we saw strong performance in our short-sleeve wovens, polos, denim shorts, hats, and fragrance selections. For the quarter, overall average men's price points increased approximately 2%, from $50.20 to $51.20. On a combined basis, accessory sales for the quarter increased approximately 9.5% against the prior year, while footwear sales were down about 0.5%. These two categories accounted for approximately 11.5% and 5%, respectively, of the second quarter net sales, which compares to 11.5% and 5.5% for each in the second quarter of fiscal 2024. For the quarter, average accessory price points were up approximately 3%, and average footwear price points were up about 8%. Also, on a combined basis, our kids' business had an outstanding summer and start to the back-to-school season, increasing approximately 23% year-over-year.

[Adam Akerson, VP of Finance and Corporate Controller at The Buckle]

We are excited to see the increased awareness and continued growth for our kids' selection, which grew to approximately 4.5% of our total business for the quarter. For the quarter, denim accounted for approximately 36% of sales, and tops accounted for approximately 29.5%, which compares to 35.5% and 30% for each in the second quarter of fiscal 2024. For the 10th consecutive quarter, private label continued to grow as an overall percentage of our mix. For the quarter, private label represented 43.5% of sales versus 43% in the second quarter of 2024. With that, we welcome your questions.

[Operator]

Thank you. As a reminder for participants, if you would like to ask a question, please raise your hand in the Zoom app. Prior to asking your question, please state your name and firm affiliation. Our first question is from Mauricio. Mauricio, go ahead and I prompt you to unmute at this time.

Great, good morning. Can you hear me okay?

[Operator]

Yes.

[Dennis Nelson, CEO at The Buckle]

Yes, thank you.

Great. Thanks for taking my questions. I guess just on the merchandise margin expansion, could you elaborate a little bit more on the drivers behind it? It seems, I think relative to the prior quarter, it decelerated. Just wondering there if there's any impact that you're seeing from tariffs already in your margins.

[Tom Heacock, CFO at The Buckle]

Hey, good morning, Mauricio. Thanks for the question. This is Tom. I'll take the first part, and then let Dennis talk a little bit more about vendors and how we're dealing with tariffs. I mean, anytime you look at the first quarter, second quarter a year ago and the comparisons we're up against, anytime you can grow merchandise margins up off record levels, we're certainly pleased with that. The team did a really nice job of maintaining really strong full regular price selling.

[Tom Heacock, CFO at The Buckle]

Again, pleased to be able to grow that, even if not at the same rate in Q2 as it was in Q1. I think the biggest driver of why we didn't see that same growth rate in Q2 compared to Q1 is really probably tied to private label. Private label, as in, I mean, a percentage of the mix was down in Q2 compared to Q1, which is the natural cycle. Looking at the year-over-year growth in the percentage of the mix, it's, private label slowed a little bit as well just with the strong selling of some of our nationally branded products. I'll let Dennis talk about tariffs.

[Dennis Nelson, CEO at The Buckle]

Good morning. On the tariffs, we continue to see the same as earlier, at least as of today, where we're seeing low to mid-single digits on average on cost increase. We have several vendors. We have such a wide range of vendors, but several, we're not seeing any increase. We have started to see with select brands a few higher single-digit increase on cost. Probably the average overall is in the low to mid-single-digit cost increase that we're seeing going forward.

Got it. Very helpful. Just one, if I could elaborate on the other part of the gross margin where you had 40 basis points of leverage on buying, occupancy, and distribution. Just wondering, like I would have maybe thought that it would have been like a higher leverage, just given how strong the comps were in the quarter. Any particular line item within buying, occupancy, or distribution where maybe there's been a little bit of more expense happening, that maybe didn't let that leverage flow through? Thank you.

[Tom Heacock, CFO at The Buckle]

Thank you, Mauricio. Really, the driver there is occupancy expense. We saw the growth in occupancy expense tick up in Q2 compared to Q1. Q2 increased about 5.5% for occupancy expense compared to about 3.5% in Q1. Really, that's related to the store projects we're doing, the new store openings, the remodels where we're moving out of a lot of malls and into better locations off malls. That's driven base rent up. With the strong sales performance in Q2, we also saw an uptick in percentage rent with several of our stores.

Wonderful. Thank you so much.

[Operator]

As a reminder for participants, if you would like to ask a question, please raise your hand in the Zoom app. Prior to asking your question, please state your name and firm affiliation. There are no further questions in queue. As a reminder, if you'd like to ask a question, please raise your hand in the Zoom app. Okay, looks like we have another question from Mauricio. Mauricio, go ahead. I'll ask you to unmute at this time.

Great. I guess just a quick follow-up on the SG&A when you were breaking down the components of the change as a percentage of sales, I just wanted to make sure, the 65 basis points from non-recurring digital investments, is it a lapping from last year, I suppose? Is this just happening on the second quarter or just as a reminder, could that be maybe like another quarter where we're also lapping that in Q3 or something like that?

[Tom Heacock, CFO at The Buckle]

Yeah. That does flow into the third quarter as well. We talked a lot about, our focus on digital, focus on growing e-comm a year ago. Brought in consultants and third parties, and really put a lot of effort around improving the Buckle.com experience. That started late in Q1, but really picked up in Q2 and into Q3. We'll continue to see some benefit there in Q3 as well.

Thank you so much.

[Operator]

Okay, there are no further questions. I will now turn the call back over to Buckle for any closing remarks.

[Dennis Nelson, CEO at The Buckle]

No further questions. We'll wrap it up quick today. Thanks everyone for your participation today, and have a great day and enjoy your weekend.

Participants

Executives

• Adam Akerson, VP of Finance and Corporate Controller
• Dennis Nelson, CEO
• Tom Heacock, CFO

Analysts