{"id":5057,"date":"2026-06-05T15:52:17","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T15:52:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/?p=5057"},"modified":"2026-06-05T15:52:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T15:52:17","slug":"lululemon-tumbles-after-forecast-cut-analysts-see-prolonged-turnaround-ahead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/?p=5057","title":{"rendered":"Lululemon tumbles after forecast cut; analysts see prolonged turnaround ahead"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lululemon Athletica LULU shares fell sharply on Friday after the athletic apparel retailer lowered its annual profit outlook and issued weaker-than-expected sales guidance, deepening investor concerns about the pace of its turnaround efforts.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The stock dropped nearly 9% in early trading after the company projected flat to slightly lower revenue for the full year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The company also warned that profitability would come under pressure as it increases promotions and works to revive demand in its core North American market.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The selloff adds to a difficult period for the Vancouver-based company, whose shares have lost nearly 65% of their value over the past 12 months as competition intensifies and product momentum weakens.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Forecast cut raises concerns over recovery<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For the full year, Lululemon now expects revenue to range between $11 billion and $11.15 billion, representing a decline of 1% to flat growth.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The previous forecast had called for revenue growth of 2% to 4%.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The company also reduced its earnings-per-share guidance to between $10.95 and $11.15, down from its earlier outlook of $12.10 to $12.30.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The outlook for the current quarter was equally disappointing. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lululemon forecast revenue of $2.45 billion to $2.48 billion and earnings of $1.76 to $1.81 per share, both well below analyst expectations compiled by FactSet.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The weaker projections come as the company ramps up discounting, refreshes its product assortment, and adjusts marketing strategies while also dealing with margin pressure from higher tariffs.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Brand backlash and product launches weigh on sales<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chief Financial Officer and Interim Co-Chief Executive Meghan Frank acknowledged that recent negative publicity has hurt the brand&#8217;s performance.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The company&#8217;s image &#8220;took a beating in the media and on social channels recently,&#8221; Frank told analysts, adding that weaker consumer traffic had weighed on sales.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lululemon also admitted that some recent product introductions failed to generate the momentum management had anticipated.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A newly launched yoga apparel collection received positive customer feedback but failed to drive broader purchasing activity across the company&#8217;s product portfolio.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;These styles were met with good guest response, but so far, the campaign hasn&#8217;t had the expected halo effect on other areas of our assortment,&#8221; Frank said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Despite the setbacks, she stressed that management was moving quickly to address the issues.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;I want to emphasize that we are not sitting still and we are moving with urgency to make the necessary adjustments to re-accelerate momentum, particularly in North America,&#8221; Frank said during a call with analysts.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Leadership transition adds uncertainty<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The guidance cut arrives during a period of significant leadership change for the retailer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lululemon is currently being run by Frank and President and Chief Commercial Officer Andr\u00e9 Maestrini following the departure of former CEO Calvin McDonald earlier this year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Former Nike executive Heidi O&#8217;Neill is scheduled to take over as chief executive in September, but analysts caution that meaningful improvements may take time.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The company recently settled a long-running dispute with founder Chip Wilson, who had publicly criticized management and launched a proxy fight aimed at reshaping the board.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Under the agreement, Wilson will nominate two directors, while the company will appoint a third board member with apparel and brand expertise. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In exchange, Wilson agreed to suspend his campaign and refrain from public criticism for 18 months.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Analysts see a lengthy turnaround ahead<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wall Street analysts reacted cautiously to the earnings update, warning that competitive pressures remain intense.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Barclays analysts said Lululemon had entered a &#8220;trap&#8221; phase where business fundamentals are deteriorating amid fierce competition and weakening pricing power.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Jefferies analyst Randal Konik said worsening sales trends in the United States remain a major concern and pointed to declining store productivity as a key risk.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">William Blair analysts noted that negative social media commentary and disappointing product launches are likely to result in weaker comparable sales and heavier markdown activity through the second quarter. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The firm also warned that 2027 could become another transition year given the timing of the leadership changes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Oppenheimer maintained confidence in the strength of the brand but expressed concern about the company&#8217;s near-term prospects.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Analysts Brian Nagel and Andrew Chasanoff said they remain constructive on &#8220;the underlying prowess of the Lululemon brand&#8221; but warned that the company risks stagnation as smaller competitors continue to gain ground in the athleisure market.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While O&#8217;Neill&#8217;s appointment is viewed positively, her non-compete agreement means she cannot begin until September, potentially delaying major product initiatives until well into 2028, according to the firm.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For investors, the latest results suggest Lululemon&#8217;s turnaround may take longer than expected, with leadership changes, product execution challenges, and intensifying competition all standing in the way of a quick recovery.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/invezz.com\/news\/2026\/06\/05\/lululemon-tumbles-after-forecast-cut-analysts-see-prolonged-turnaround-ahead\/\">Lululemon tumbles after forecast cut; analysts see prolonged turnaround ahead<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/invezz.com\">Invezz<\/a><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lululemon Athletica LULU shares fell sharply on Friday after the athletic apparel retailer lowered its annual profit outlook and issued weaker-than-expected sales guidance, deepening investor concerns about the pace of its turnaround efforts.The stock dropped nearly 9% in early trading after the company projected flat to slightly lower revenue for the full year.The company also&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5058,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5057","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stock"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5057","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5057"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5057\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5058"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5057"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5057"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5057"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}