Burlington Shares Slide After Store Traffic “Fell Off Significantly” 

Off-price department store retailer Burlington, formerly known as Burlington Coat Factory, fell in premarket trading after reporting weak third-quarter comparable sales and issuing soft fourth-quarter and full-year comp guidance that missed Bloomberg Consensus expectations.

Snapshot: Q3 Results (Slight Miss on Revenue/Comps)

• Adjusted EPS: $1.68 (beat) vs. $1.55 y/y

• Revenue: $2.71B (+7.1% y/y), just below Bloomberg Consensus ($2.72B)

• Comp sales: +1% (Estimate: +2.5%)

• Gross margin: 44.2% (up from 43.9%)

• SG&A: 35% of revenue (improvement vs. 35.4%)

• Merchandise inventories: $1.66B, up 15% y/y (well above BBG estimate of $1.51B)

“Total sales increased 7% in the third quarter, while comparable store sales increased 1%. Traffic to our stores fell off significantly after the back-to-school period driven by unseasonably warm temperatures in our major markets. Our comp trend then picked up to mid-single-digits in mid-October once the weather cooled, and that strong trend has continued through the first three weeks of November,” CEO Michael O’Sullivan wrote in a statement. 

Burlington’s fourth-quarter and full-year forecasts were also underwhelming compared with Bloomberg Consensus expectations. Shares are down 5% in premarket trading.

Snapshot: Q4 Outlook (Soft vs. Street)

• Comp sales: 0% to +2% (Estimate: +2.1%) Adjusted

• EPS: $4.50–$4.70 (Estimate: $4.62) Sales growth: +7% to +9%

Snapshot: 2026 Outlook (Mixed – EPS Raised, Comps Still Light)

• Adjusted EPS: $9.69–$9.89, raised (Estimate: $9.56) Sales: +8% (prior +7–8%)

• Comps: +1% to +2% (Estimate +2.46%) Net capex: ≈$950M

According to company filings, Burlington’s core customer has an annual household income of $25,000 to $100,000 and is typically between 25 and 49 years old.

It’s important to note that consumers more broadly, especially in the low- to mid-income tiers, are under financial pressure and increasingly value-oriented. This has been confirmed in recent earnings from Target, Home Depot, Walmart, and TJ Maxx.

The question becomes whether Burlington’s customers are dialing back on spending on apparel, footwear, and coats, not because of seasonal trends, but because their pocketbooks are being squeezed.