XXL slumps as Q4 guide comes in 'even softer than expected'

Xxl AS

21/12/2022 13:17

(Adds analyst comments, milestones)
    ** Shares in XXL  XXL.OL  fall 11% after the Norwegian
sports retailer warned of weaker earnings margins and announced
plans to raise 500 million Norwegian crowns in new equity
    ** XXL expects "significantly lower gross margins" in Q4,
with total operating revenue in range of NOK 2.3-2.4 billion
        ** Pareto analyst Joachim Aalberg Huse says XXL's Q4
guide is "even softer than expected" despite taking into account
the fact that the Nordic sports retail market has been
challenging for a while
  
       ** He adds, however, it's a positive that the retailer's
debt situation seems to be resolved, and that it would conclude
the awaited equity raise
  
   ** XXL also said it plans to leave the Austrian market in
2023 - a business that as a whole has been unsuccessful and led
to substantial losses for the group, the analyst says
        ** Despite some positives Pareto keeps "sell" rating on
the stock as market conditions remain challenging and cuts to
consensus are likely to follow    
  
    ** The shares, on track for their worst day since
end-September, are worst performers among Norwegian stocks
    ** About 3 million shares of the company have traded so far
today, nearly eight times their 30-day moving average full-day
volume
 (Reporting by Agata Rybska)
 ((agata.rybska@thomsonreuters.com))