Abercrombie & Fitch has strong year; to open 30 new stores
Abercrombie & Fitch maintained its momentum in the fourth quarter fueled by another strong performance from Hollister, and marked its 13th consecutive quarter of growth.
The apparel retailer hit a key milestone in 2025, surpassing the $5 billion sales mark for the first time. It also continued to expanding its footprint, growing square footage by 4% year over year. It ended the year with a total of 829 stores.
On the company’s earnings call, CFO Robert J. Ball said Abercrombie expects to deliver about 125 “new experiences” in 2026, including 55 new stores and 70 right-sizes or remodels.
“We do expect net store openings to be relatively balanced across brands, but tilted to the Americas,” Ball told analysts.
Abercrombie reported earnings per share of $3.68 for the quarter ended Jan. 31, ahead of analysts expectations of $3.58 per share and up from $3.57 per share in the year-ago period.
Net sales rose 5% to $1.67 billion. Total comparable sales inched up 1%.
By brand, Hollister’s sales increased to $863.3 million from $812.3 million, with comparable sales up 3%. Abercrombie’s sales rose to $806.5 million from $772.7 million, with comparable sales down 1%.
“Our record fourth quarter net sales marked our thirteenth consecutive quarter of growth, with both operating margin and earnings per share at the high end of expectations we shared in early January, stated CEO Fran Horowitz.
For the full year, net sales increased 6% to $5.27 billion, with growth across channels and regions. Comparable sales increased 3%, rising 13% at Hollister and down 7% at Abercrombie. Digital comprised 44% of total sales, with Hollister at approximately 31% and Abercrombie at about 59%.
Net income per share was $10.46 and $9.86 on a reported and adjusted basis, respectively. This compares to net income per diluted share last year of $10.69 on a reported basis.
In her statement, Horowitz said that the company entered fiscal 2026 with a strong foundation, “including two globally relevant brands, a proven operating model, and a robust balance sheet, all managed by a world class team.”
“Our goals for 2026 are to grow net sales, deliver another year of double-digit operating margin and grow earnings per share, all while making strategic investments that will fuel our long-term global ambition,” she said.
For 2026, Abercrombie expects sales gains of 3% to 5% operating margin in the range of 12% to 12.5%, and net income per share in the range of $10.20 to $11.
The company ended the year with 829 stores, including 523 Hollister stores and 306 namesake stores.
