Track market-moving stories before they get noisy

IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: BOOT) today announced that the company will release its financial results for the second quarter fiscal year 2027 ended September 26, 2026, after the market close on Wednesday, October 28, 2026. Management will host a conference call that afternoon (October 28, 2026) at 4:30 p.m. ET (1:30 p.m. PT) to discuss the financial results. Investors and analysts interested in participating in the call are invited to dial (833) 890-4545 at.

Investors seek growth stocks to capitalize on above-average growth in financials that help these securities grab the market's attention and produce exceptional returns. But finding a great growth stock is not easy at all.

By their very nature, these stocks carry above-average risk and volatility. Moreover, if a company's growth story is over or nearing its end, betting on it could lead to significant loss.

However, the Zacks Growth Style Score (part of the Zacks Style Scores system), which looks beyond the traditional growth attributes to analyze a company's real growth prospects, makes it pretty easy to find cutting-edge growth stocks.

Boot Barn (BOOT - Free Report) is on the list of such stocks currently recommended by our proprietary system. In addition to a favorable Growth Score, it carries a top Zacks Rank.

Research shows that stocks carrying the best growth features consistently beat the market. And for stocks that have a combination of a Growth Score of A or B and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy), returns are even better.

While there are numerous reasons why the stock of this Western apparel and footwear retailer is a great growth pick right now, we have highlighted three of the most important factors below:

Earnings GrowthArguably nothing is more important than earnings growth, as surging profit levels is what most investors are after. For growth investors, double-digit earnings growth is highly preferable, as it is often perceived as an indication of strong prospects (and stock price gains) for the company under consideration.

While the historical EPS growth rate for Boot Barn is 6.3%, investors should actually focus on the projected growth. The company's EPS is expected to grow 23.7% this year, crushing the industry average, which calls for EPS growth of 16.3%.

Cash Flow GrowthWhile cash is the lifeblood of any business, higher-than-average cash flow growth is more important and beneficial for growth-oriented companies than for mature companies. That's because, growth in cash flow enables these companies to expand their businesses without depending on expensive outside funds.

Right now, year-over-year cash flow growth for Boot Barn is 26.1%, which is higher than many of its peers. In fact, the rate compares to the industry average of -5.7%.

While investors should actually consider the current cash flow growth, it's worth taking a look at the historical rate too for putting the current reading into proper perspective. The company's annualized cash flow growth rate has been 21.3% over the past 3-5 years versus the industry average of 11.5%.

Promising Earnings Estimate RevisionsSuperiority of a stock in terms of the metrics outlined above can be further validated by looking at the trend in earnings estimate revisions. A positive trend is of course favorable here. Empirical research shows that there is a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.

There have been upward revisions in current-year earnings estimates for Boot Barn. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has surged 0.1% over the past month.

Bottom LineWhile the overall earnings estimate revisions have made Boot Barn a Zacks Rank #2 stock, it has earned itself a Growth Score of B based on a number of factors, including the ones discussed above.

You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

This combination positions Boot Barn well for outperformance, so growth investors may want to bet on it.

On October 14, 2026, Boot Barn Holdings Inc BOOT shares fell 4.0% to a current price of $112.86, hitting a 52-week low of $110.53, and showing significant volatility over the past month with a decline of 21.0%. The stock has also witnessed a year-to-date drop of 36.0% and a one-year decline of 37.3%.

GF Value™ verdict: Current price of $112.86 is 39.2% below the GF Value™ of $185.56. GF Score™ of 92/100 indicates a strong overall performance. Most notable signal: Insider activity shows $1.7M in sales over the past year, with no buying activity. Is BOOT Overvalued or Undervalued? Currently, Boot Barn Holdings Inc BOOT is trading at a price of $112.86, which is significantly below its GF Value™ estimate of $185.56. This represents a margin of safety of 39.2%, suggesting that the stock may be undervalued at present. The GF Value™ is GuruFocus' proprietary estimate of a stock's intrinsic value, derived from historical trading multiples along with assessments of past business growth and future performance predictions. Despite this attractive valuation, caution is warranted as the GF Valuation label indicates a "Possible Value Trap, Think Twice." This suggests that while the stock appears undervalued, there may be underlying issues or risks that could affect future performance.

The current market sentiment may be influenced by recent price declines and insider selling, which can signal a lack of confidence in the stock's near-term prospects. Therefore, while the undervaluation presents a potential opportunity, it would be prudent for investors to carefully consider the broader context and the reasons behind the recent price movement.

How Does BOOT's Valuation Compare to Its History? Metric Current Historical P/E (TTM) 14.3x 19.0x Forward P/E 12.3x N/A The current P/E ratio of 14.3x is 25% below its 5-year median P/E of 19.0x, indicating that the stock is trading well below its historical valuation levels. This finding aligns with the GF Value™ assessment, reinforcing the conclusion that BOOT is undervalued based on its historical performance metrics.

What Does BOOT's GF Score™ Tell Us? The GF Score™ is a comprehensive measure that evaluates a company's financial health, profitability, growth potential, valuation, and momentum. Boot Barn's GF Score™ of 92/100 indicates strong performance across these dimensions, particularly highlighting its profitability and growth potential.

Metric Rating GF Score™ 92 Financial Strength 7/10 Profitability 9/10 Growth 10/10 Valuation 4/10 Momentum 7/10 With a strong profitability rank of 9/10 and a perfect growth rank of 10/10, Boot Barn demonstrates solid financial performance and potential for future expansion. However, the valuation rank of 4/10 reflects concerns regarding its current market valuation relative to its intrinsic value, suggesting that while the company is performing well operationally, the market may be pricing it unfavorably at this moment.

What Are Gurus and Insiders Doing with BOOT? Currently, three gurus hold positions in Boot Barn, but there have been no additions, and six have trimmed their positions in recent quarters. This activity signals a cautious sentiment among professional investors, which may reflect concerns regarding the stock's recent performance and outlook. Additionally, insider selling totaling $1.7 million over the past 12 months, with no purchases, further implies that even those close to the company may lack confidence in the stock’s near-term prospects. This pattern of insider activity is critical to consider, as GuruFocus uniquely tracks these signals, distinguishing it from other financial analysis platforms.

What This Means for Investors In conclusion, Boot Barn Holdings Inc BOOT appears to be undervalued based on its GF Value™ analysis, which shows a significant margin of safety. However, potential investors should approach with caution, considering the current market dynamics, recent insider selling, and the overall market sentiment. The stock may present an attractive opportunity, but the warning signals from both the GF Valuation label and insider activity suggest a careful examination is warranted before making decisions.

For more detailed information on Boot Barn Holdings Inc BOOT , you can visit the Boot Barn Holdings Inc (BOOT) stock page and explore additional resources available on the GF Value™ page.

Frequently Asked Questions What is BOOT's GF Score™?

BOOT has a GF Score™ of 92/100, indicating a strong overall performance in key areas such as profitability and growth potential.

Is BOOT overvalued or undervalued?

BOOT is currently undervalued according to the GF Value™, with a significant margin of safety of 39.2% compared to its intrinsic value.

What is BOOT's P/E ratio?

BOOT has a P/E ratio of 14.3x (TTM), which is 25% below its 5-year median of 19.0x, indicating that it is trading at a lower valuation than its historical averages.

This stock alert was generated using automated technology and GuruFocus financial data to provide readers with timely and accurate market reporting. This content was reviewed by GuruFocus editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].

Key Takeaways Boot Barn's Q1 e-commerce comparable sales climbed 13.4%, while total sales rose 17.7% to $593.5 million.BOOT's AI-enabled Range Finder and Cassidy tools aim to enhance shopping across digital and store channels.Boot Barn plans 70 new stores in fiscal 2027 and expects e-commerce comparable sales growth of 11-13%.
Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. (BOOT - Free Report) is integrating artificial intelligence (AI) shopping tools into its omnichannel strategy, connecting digital capabilities with its stores-first retail model. Its AI-enabled Range Finder and Cassidy, an in-store consumer AI solution, complement the mobile app and WHIP endless-aisle offering. These capabilities support a broader strategy centered on merchandise access, customer engagement and efficient fulfillment across online and physical channels.

The company’s digital performance provides an encouraging backdrop. In first-quarter fiscal 2027, e-commerce comparable sales increased 13.4%, driven by double-digit growth at bootbarn.com. Store comparable sales rose 3.8%, bringing consolidated comparable sales growth to 4.7%. Net sales advanced 17.7% year over year to $593.5 million, supported by new store openings and comparable sales gains.

Boot Barn’s expanding store network anchors this approach. The retailer opened 27 stores during the quarter, ending with 566 locations across 49 states. Management noted that stores fulfill a large portion of online orders. This arrangement enhances merchandise margins while giving customers access to a broader assortment, reinforcing the network’s role beyond traditional store sales.

Strong adoption of buy online, pick up in store and ship-to-store services further supports the strategy. These options help drive store traffic, reduce fulfillment costs and deepen customer engagement. Alongside this infrastructure, AI shopping tools extend the digital experience into stores, adding another way for Boot Barn to connect its channels and make shopping more seamless.

Boot Barn projects fiscal 2027 e-commerce comparable sales growth of 11-13% and plans 70 store openings. Boot Barn has not separately quantified the sales or margin contribution of its AI tools. Still, their place within a growing store network and established fulfillment capabilities gives the company another avenue to improve the shopping experience.

Boot Barn’s Price Performance, Valuation & EstimatesShares of Boot Barn have lost 33.4% over the past year compared with the industry’s 3.8% decline.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

From a valuation standpoint, BOOT trades at a trailing price-to-sales ratio of 1.57, above the industry’s average of 1.30. It has a Value Score of A.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Boot Barn’s fiscal 2027 earnings implies 23.5% year-over-year growth, while the same for fiscal 2028 indicates an uptick of 10.3%. Estimates for fiscal 2027 and 2028 have remained unchanged and revised upward by a penny, respectively, over the past 30 days.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Boot Barn currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Other Key PicksGenesco Inc. (GCO - Free Report) is a Nashville-based specialty retailer and branded company. It sells footwear and accessories through retail stores. The company sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Genesco’s current fiscal-year earnings indicates 62.1% growth from the year-ago actual. GCO delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 11.2%.

Designer Brands Inc. (DBI - Free Report) designs, produces and retails footwear and accessories. It offers shoes, boots, sandals, sneakers, socks, handbags and accessories. It currently carries a Zacks Rank #2.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Designer Brands’ current fiscal-year earnings and sales suggests growth of 225% and 0.6%, respectively, from the year-ago actuals. DBI delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 108.1%.

Urban Outfitters, Inc. (URBN - Free Report) is a lifestyle products and services company that sells fashion apparel, accessories, footwear, home goods and related offerings through a portfolio of global consumer brands. The company carries a Zacks Rank of 2 at present.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Urban Outfitters’ current fiscal-year earnings and sales suggests growth of 14% and 9.5%, respectively, from the year-ago actuals. URBN delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 9.7%.

For new and old investors, taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals. Zacks Premium provides lots of different ways to do both.

The popular research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor, giving you access to daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens.

Zacks Premium includes access to the Zacks Style Scores as well.

What are the Zacks Style Scores? The Zacks Style Scores, developed alongside the Zacks Rank, are complementary indicators that rate stocks based on three widely-followed investing methodologies; they also help investors pick stocks with the best chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.

Each stock is given an alphabetic rating of A, B, C, D or F based on their value, growth, and momentum qualities. With this system, an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on, meaning the better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform.

The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:

Value ScoreFor value investors, it's all about finding good stocks at good prices, and discovering which companies are trading under their true value before the broader market catches on. The Value Style Score utilizes ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and a host of other multiples to help pick out the most attractive and discounted stocks.

Growth ScoreWhile good value is important, growth investors are more focused on a company's financial strength and health, and its future outlook. The Growth Style Score takes projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow into account to uncover stocks that will see long-term, sustainable growth.

Momentum ScoreMomentum traders and investors live by the saying "the trend is your friend." This investing style is all about taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Employing factors like one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, the Momentum Style Score can indicate favorable times to build a position in high-momentum stocks.

VGM ScoreIf you want a combination of all three Style Scores, then the VGM Score will be your friend. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, helping you find the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum. It's also one of the best indicators to use with the Zacks Rank.

How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank The Zacks Rank is a proprietary stock-rating model that harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings expectations, to help investors build a successful portfolio.

#1 (Strong Buy) stocks have produced an unmatched +23.86% average annual return since 1988, which is more than double the S&P 500's performance over the same time frame. However, the Zacks Rank examines a ton of stocks, and there can be more than 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, and another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.

But it can feel overwhelming to pick the right stocks for you and your investing goals with over 800 top-rated stocks to choose from.

That's where the Style Scores come in.

You want to make sure you're buying stocks with the highest likelihood of success, and to do that, you'll need to pick stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B. If you like a stock that only has a #3 (Hold) rank, it should also have Scores of A or B to guarantee as much upside potential as possible.

Since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank, the direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy.

Here's an example: a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one with Style Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings outlook, and a bigger chance its share price will decrease too.

Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.

Stock to Watch: Boot Barn (BOOT - Free Report) Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. is the largest lifestyle retailer in the United States, specializing in western and work-related footwear, apparel, and accessories. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Irvine, California, the company serves customers through an integrated network of brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce platforms. At the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2027, Boot Barn operated 566 stores across 49 states and complemented its physical presence with a nationwide digital platform that supports services such as buy online, pick up in store, curbside pickup, ship-from-store and in-store returns. 

BOOT is a #2 (Buy) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of A.

It also boasts a Value Style Score of B thanks to attractive valuation metrics like a forward P/E ratio of 13.47; value investors should take notice.

For fiscal 2027, one analyst revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days, and the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.00 to $9.08 per share. BOOT boasts an average earnings surprise of +11.4%.

With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Value and VGM Style Scores, BOOT should be on investors' short list.

Taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for new and old investors, and Zacks Premium offers many different ways to do both.

The research service features daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens, all of which will help you become a smarter, more confident investor.

Zacks Premium includes access to the Zacks Style Scores as well.

What are the Zacks Style Scores? Developed alongside the Zacks Rank, the Zacks Style Scores are a group of complementary indicators that help investors pick stocks with the best chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.

Based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics, each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F. The better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform; an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on.

The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:

Value ScoreFinding good stocks at good prices, and discovering which companies are trading under their true value, are what value investors like to focus on. So, the Value Style Score takes into account ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and a host of other multiples to highlight the most attractive and discounted stocks.

Growth ScoreWhile good value is important, growth investors are more focused on a company's financial strength and health, and its future outlook. The Growth Style Score takes projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow into account to uncover stocks that will see long-term, sustainable growth.

Momentum ScoreMomentum traders and investors live by the saying "the trend is your friend." This investing style is all about taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Employing factors like one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, the Momentum Style Score can indicate favorable times to build a position in high-momentum stocks.

VGM ScoreIf you want a combination of all three Style Scores, then the VGM Score will be your friend. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, helping you find the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum. It's also one of the best indicators to use with the Zacks Rank.

How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank The Zacks Rank, which is a proprietary stock-rating model, employs earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings expectations, to make building a winning portfolio easier.

Investors can count on the Zacks Rank's success, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +23.8% average annual return since 1988, more than double the S&P 500's performance. But the model rates a large number of stocks, and there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.

With more than 800 top-rated stocks to choose from, it can certainly feel overwhelming to pick the ones that are right for you and your investing journey.

That's where the Style Scores come in.

To have the best chance of big returns, you'll want to always consider stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B, which will give you the highest probability of success. If you're looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, it's important they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.

Since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank, the direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy.

Here's an example: a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one with Style Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings outlook, and a bigger chance its share price will decrease too.

Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.

Stock to Watch: Boot Barn (BOOT - Free Report) Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. is the largest lifestyle retailer in the United States, specializing in western and work-related footwear, apparel, and accessories. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Irvine, California, the company serves customers through an integrated network of brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce platforms. At the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2027, Boot Barn operated 566 stores across 49 states and complemented its physical presence with a nationwide digital platform that supports services such as buy online, pick up in store, curbside pickup, ship-from-store and in-store returns. 

BOOT is a #2 (Buy) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of A.

Additionally, the company could be a top pick for growth investors. BOOT has a Growth Style Score of B, forecasting year-over-year earnings growth of 23.5% for the current fiscal year.

Six analysts revised their earnings estimate higher in the last 60 days for fiscal 2027, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.55 to $9.08 per share. BOOT also boasts an average earnings surprise of +11.4%.

With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Growth and VGM Style Scores, BOOT should be on investors' short list.

On September 22, 2026, Boot Barn Holdings Inc BOOT shares rose 4.0% to a current price of $129.28. This move comes amid a 52-week range of $120.64 to $210.25, highlighting significant volatility in the stock over the past year.

GF Value™ verdict: Current price is $129.28, 29.7% undervalued compared to GF Value™ of $183.97.GF Score™ of 91/100 indicates a strong overall performance across key metrics.Notable signal: Insider activity shows that insiders sold $1.7M worth of shares over the past 12 months with no buying activity.Is BOOT Overvalued or Undervalued?According to GuruFocus, Boot Barn Holdings Inc is currently trading at $129.28, which is significantly lower than its GF Value™ estimate of $183.97. This suggests that the stock is undervalued by approximately 29.7%, indicating a potential investment opportunity for those who believe in the company's future growth. The GF Value™ represents GuruFocus' proprietary intrinsic-value estimate derived from various factors, including historical trading multiples, past business growth, and future performance estimates. While the undervaluation presents an attractive margin of safety, it is essential to consider the GF Valuation label, which warns that BOOT may be a possible value trap. This caution arises from the recent performance trends and insider activity.

Boot Barn's stock has faced downward pressure over the past year, with a year-to-date decline of 26.7%. Such a steep drop can raise concerns about the underlying business health, despite the attractive valuation metrics. Investors may want to weigh the potential for recovery against the risks evident in the company's recent performance and insider selling.

How Does BOOT's Valuation Compare to Its History?MetricCurrentHistoricalP/E (TTM)16.4x19.5x (5-Year Median)Forward P/E14.1xN/ACurrently, Boot Barn's trailing P/E ratio stands at 16.4x, which is 16% below its 5-year median P/E of 19.5x. Furthermore, the forward P/E of 14.1x suggests that the stock is trading at a discount relative to its historical valuation metrics. This analysis aligns with the GF Value™ assessment, indicating that BOOT may be undervalued based on its historical P/E ratios.

What Does BOOT's GF Score™ Tell Us?The GF Score™ evaluates a stock's performance across multiple dimensions, including financial strength, profitability, growth, valuation, and momentum. Boot Barn's GF Score™ of 91/100 is strong, reflecting solid fundamentals and growth prospects, though it also has some areas of concern.

MetricRatingGF Score™91Financial Strength7/10Profitability9/10Growth10/10Valuation4/10Momentum7/10Examining these scores reveals that Boot Barn excels in growth (10/10) and profitability (9/10), indicating strong operational efficiency and potential for expansion. However, the valuation rank of 4/10 suggests that the stock may be under scrutiny for its current pricing relative to its intrinsic value. The overall high GF Score™ reflects a robust business model but highlights the need for caution regarding valuation metrics.

What Are Gurus and Insiders Doing with BOOT?Currently, three gurus hold positions in Boot Barn Holdings Inc, but none have added to their stakes in recent quarters, while six have trimmed their positions. This trend of trimming suggests a cautious outlook among institutional investors. Such behavior can be indicative of underlying concerns, as gurus often have access to valuable insights regarding a company's future performance.

Additionally, insider selling of $1.7 million worth of shares over the past twelve months, without any buying activity, raises further alarms. This pattern might suggest that insiders lack confidence in the company's short-term prospects, which is an important signal for potential investors to consider when evaluating the stock.

What This Means for InvestorsIn conclusion, Boot Barn Holdings Inc appears to be undervalued based on its GF Value™ estimate of $183.97, compared to its current trading price of $129.28. However, the potential opportunity is tempered by concerns over insider selling and guru trimming activity that suggest caution. Investors should weigh the attractive valuation against recent performance trends and insider sentiment before making any decisions. For further insights, visit the Boot Barn Holdings Inc BOOT stock page, along with the GF Value™ page for a deeper understanding of its valuation.

Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat is BOOT's GF Score™?

Boot Barn's GF Score™ is 91/100, indicating strong overall performance across key metrics.

Is BOOT overvalued or undervalued?

BOOT is currently undervalued, with a GF Value™ estimate of $183.97, suggesting a potential upside from its current price of $129.28.

What is BOOT's P/E ratio?

Boot Barn's P/E ratio is 16.4x, which is below its 5-year median of 19.5x, indicating that the stock is trading at a discount relative to its historical valuations.

This stock alert was generated using automated technology and GuruFocus financial data to provide readers with timely and accurate market reporting. This content was reviewed by GuruFocus editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].

Key Takeaways BOOT expects full-year merchandise-margin expansion of 60 basis points, excluding tariff refunds.BOOT expects merchandise margin to reach about 52.2% of sales, up 130 basis points year over year.BOOT is using volume discounts, lower logistics rates and store fulfillment to improve merchandise margins. Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. (BOOT - Free Report) is targeting further margin expansion through a combination of buying scale, improved full-price selling, supply-chain efficiencies and sourcing initiatives. Management expects these initiatives to support merchandise-margin performance.

In the first quarter of fiscal 2027, merchandise margin expanded 220 basis points (bps), including a 250-bps benefit from tariff refunds and 60 bps of product-margin expansion, partly offset by a 90-bps freight headwind from lapping low freight expense in the prior-year period. For fiscal 2027, Boot Barn expects merchandise margin to reach approximately 52.2% of sales, representing a 130 bps year-over-year increase. This includes a 70-bps benefit from tariff refunds. Excluding tariff refunds, the company expects 50 bps of product-margin expansion and 10 bps of freight improvement.

The company is also leveraging its growing scale. Boot Barn is securing volume discounts from some third-party vendors by purchasing full-container loads of products or styles, with increasing purchasing volumes helping the company obtain more of these discounts as the business grows.

Additionally, management has renegotiated logistics and transportation arrangements to obtain lower rates and better discounts, helping offset elevated freight costs. Omnichannel capabilities provide another efficiency lever. A large portion of e-commerce orders are fulfilled from stores, which enhances merchandise margins and gives customers access to a broader assortment of inventory. The company's buy-online-pickup-in-store and ship-to-store offerings also help reduce fulfillment costs.

Overall, Boot Barn expects its supply-chain initiatives to support merchandise-margin expansion, while its logistics and omnichannel capabilities can help offset some of the cost pressures associated with continued store growth.

Zacks Rundown for BOOTBoot Barn’s shares have lost 23.7% in the past six months compared with the industry’s decline of 13.8%.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

From a valuation standpoint, Boot Barn trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 12.83, higher than the industry’s average of 11.83. BOOT presently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BOOT’s current and next fiscal-year earnings implies year-over-year rallies of 23.5% and 10.3%, respectively.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Other Stocks to ConsiderSome other top-ranked stocks have been discussed below:

Urban Outfitters, Inc. (URBN - Free Report) offers lifestyle products and services in the United States and internationally. At present, URBN carries a Zacks Rank of 2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for URBN’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings implies growth of 9.5% and 14%, respectively, from the year-ago figures. URBN has delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 9.7%, on average.

FIGS, Inc. (FIGS - Free Report) operates as a direct-to-consumer healthcare apparel and lifestyle company in the United States and internationally. At present, FIGS carries a Zacks Rank of 2.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FIGS’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings implies growth of 19.7% and 89.5%, respectively, from the year-ago figures. FIGS has delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 201.8%, on average.

Fossil Group, Inc. (FOSL - Free Report) designs, develops, markets, and distributes consumer fashion accessories in the United States, Europe, Asia, and internationally. At present, FOSL carries a Zacks Rank of 2.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FOSL’s current fiscal-year sales indicates a decline of 4%, while the same for earnings indicates growth of 96.7% from the year-ago figures. FOSL delivered a trailing four-quarter negative earnings surprise of 236.2%, on average.

MoMo Productions/DigitalVision via Getty Images

Download this episode on Apple Podcasts/Spotify or listen below:

It's a witching day! Steven Cress says as a long-term investor, don't make any investment decisions on it (0:30) Intapp (Quant Buy) reveals new partnership with OpenAI (2:00) Boot Barn trading like an AI stock (6:10) Costco, DoorDash and Uber (12:12)

Follow Steve on YouTube, X, and TikTok to watch all of his Wall Street Breakfast episodes!

Transcript

Rena Sherbill: It's Friday, September 18th, and we are here with Mr. Steve Cress. Steve, I am going to start with a comment that was left, we posted yesterday's episode on our vaunted Wall Street Breakfast podcast, and John Boy commented:

Friday the 18th is a witching day, 1 of 4 per year. Could be a little crazy.

Steve Cress: Sometimes it is crazy. It is today. sometimes it's not. it is a witching day for the S&P options, for futures, for contracts. all three come today. And sometimes the market tends to be a bit overexaggerated on those days. I would say, as a long-term investor, just consider it like a grain of salt over the shoulder. Don't make any investment decisions on it.

Obviously if you're a short-term trader, it can impact your holdings. But what we do in the world of Quant and with our Seeking Alpha contributors, our recommendations tend to have life in more than a few minutes or hours. So I would say whatever happens today, take it with a grain of salt.

And on occasion, there are swings down and look at the fundamentals of a company. And if there's an opportunity and a stock really you like is off. And you know, by example, say it has A plus grades for growth and for valuation and profitability.

And the stock comes down and it's a strong buy, you want to take advantage of that. but for the most part, if you're a long-term investor, just sit back and watch it.

I think the the markets aren't really reacting to Triple Witch now. I think there might be a little exhaustion in the markets and we're seeing in the futures, you know, minutes before the opening bell, the S&P (SP500) is basically unchanged. The NASDAQ (NDAQ) is basically unchanged.

I think people are ready for the weekend. TGIF.

Rena Sherbill: TGIF. So our first piece of stock news this morning is Intapp (INTA). Its shares have perked up just under 1.5% in pre-market action after it revealed a new partnership with OpenAI (OPENAI). Steve, what do you have to say about INTA?

Steve Cress: It's a small software company. And when you scroll down on our stock page, you'll see sector information technology and the industry is application software. It's not really that big, it's 2.81 billion. but the company definitely has good metrics. And it's kind of had that classic software price performance action this year.

You can see on the last 52 weeks, it's down about 18.32%. Year to date, it's down about 19%. And if you crawl like earlier in the year, a lot of investors and traders were speculating that it would be the death of software stocks. So many software stocks sold and it sold off with like fairly attractive fundamentals.

But, as we saw in recent weeks, many software companies were actually producing better than expected earnings and top line growth. And what they were finding is that AI was actually making them more efficient.

I've said this on past webinars and calls. I think it was just grossly over exaggerated earlier this year and late last year when people were saying it would be the death of software stocks because of AI.

I've often made the reference that you're not gonna have a a plumber or a baker or an electrician trying to create their own software off of AI.They still need these softwares to operate their business. And in fact, what the software companies are finding is that they're being able to improve their user experience with AI.

They're becoming more efficient. And as a result, we've seen a couple good quarters from these companies. So in the recent month, even though the stock is down, let's look at the last five days, the stock is down as well. I guess when we look at this full year experience, what happened is there was a big sell-off in software from December.

All the way through to February and it hit a low of 21. currently the stock is up to 36. So it's worked its way back. And especially, I'd say during the July period, there was really a heavy rotation out of semiconductors.

And within the sector of information technology, that rotation went into the software stocks as investors were realizing, you know what, earnings are going to be coming through better than expected.

So the stock rallied off of its lows from the end of May at $20 to its current level of $36.69. It has a quant buy. And also the consensus from Wall Street is a buy, and Seeking Alpha contributors a consensus as a buy. So there's three independent investment research sources.

And in terms of quant, when you look at the valuation on this stock, there are missing metrics for in tap, and that's because they do they're at a precarious place where their normalized earnings are positive, but their GAAP earnings are negative.

So when we look at a PE for a company, if there's negative earnings, nothing's gonna come up next to the metric. You're not gonna see a multiple. As we scroll down, you'll see this is all GAAP so negative earnings quarter after quarter.

However, I will say to the company's credit, the numbers that were coming in, even though they were negative, they were a positive surprise to many Wall Street analysts, the exception of the last quarter for the GAAP.

But on normalized, it beat. So you can see it came in at a positive 41 cents and it beat by five cents.

I'd say going into the upcoming quarter at the beginning of November on the 4th, we have seven analysts that have revised their estimates up and zero have revise revised it down.So they're looking positive at the next quarter for Intapp. Quant buy.

Rena Sherbill: Quant buy.

Boot Barn (BOOT) is our second stock in the news. I'm gonna read a quote from CEO John Hazen, who spoke September 15th at the Goldman Sachs Global Consumer and Retail Conference.

We have always had a B2B business where we would sell to oil and gas firms, construction firms, really bulk orders to someone who might want to outfit his entire team in work boots. More and more often, those are data centers.

Shares of BOOT are down nearly fourteen percent for the week amid concerns on consumer discretionary spending. To wit we have a hold. Steve, what do you gotta say?

Steve Cress: We do have a hold and I guess even though this is at a parallel retail company in shoes and boots, perhaps you could say it was trading like an AI stock. With many of the AI stocks, they sort of peaked and fell off after June.

And that has happened with this company, but I'm not so sure it's on just boot sales. The anticipation of maybe a slowdown in future boot sales as the market is anticipating for data centers and many semiconductor companies that they can't extend the rallies based on the growth that they've had. But the reality is, and the fundamentals are that growth is coming in stronger than expected.

You do not see that in Boot Barn. And as you rightly pointed out, the shares have been weak, whether it's year to date or over the last five days. On the open this morning, we can see there's a a little bit of an uptick, and that is in somewhat of a flattish market.

If you look at the Wall Street consensus, it has been off. There is a Wall Street consensus strong buy in the stock. Obviously, the stock has not performed well historically. but when you look at the strong buy, Wall Street is telling you it's mispriced.

Quant is telling you just hold on to it. We're not sure it's out of the woods. I will say when we look at the valuation for the company, it is a C, but some of the conventional metrics, such as PE have it at a discount to the sector.

So if we were to look at forward PE, it trades at 13 times versus the sector at 15 times, roughly a 13% discount. So PE is attractive. Elements such as EV to sales and the all-important peg is actually at a premium. So we combine the growth of the company together with a PE, it's actually a little bit rich.

So overall, the valuation is in line with the sector. If we take a look at BOOT and growth, that's actually a different picture. I do like the fact that it's not only is the overall grade B minus, what I'm seeing is if we look at forward top line growth, we can see that A minus grade gives you that instant characterization that the revenue growth is stronger for this company than other consumer discretionary companies.

And you can see the forward revenue growth is fifteen point five percent versus the sector at four point three percent. If we take a look at EPS, forward EPS is at nineteen point seven percent versus 8.4% for this sector.

So growth at a top and bottom line is at a huge premium.

I really do like these numbers. it does get weighed down by the ROE growth. So there's a little bit of slowdown in the company's ROE, but it's still the growth rate for the RoE is far superior to the sector. I would I'd say this is actually a fairly positive hold.

There's no question about it. The momentum of the stock versus the consumer discretionary sector has not been good, whether we're looking at a one-year basis or the near term. the last three months, the stock is down 25% versus the sector only down four percent.

And the same pattern is true for those other price points. But I do like the growth numbers that are coming up for the company. And if I look at the analyst revisions for BOOT, I could see in the last 90 days, 12 analysts have revised their estimates up and zero have revised down.

Now, this is, I guess, probably a tender point. For the upcoming quarter, no analysts have upgraded their estimates and 10 have revised it down. So the analysts are saying they believe the fiscal year should be good. They're improving their overall annual estimates, but there's something about the upcoming quarter.

I guess they best have received guidance at some point that 10 analysts have lowered their estimates and none have increased it. Well, if we look at back at the last quarter, it was a handsome beat. It beat normalized EPS by 21 cents, which given at $1.91, and GAAP beat by $59, coming in at $2.29.

There's just something about the upcoming quarter that analysts are not pleased with. If we do look at the fiscal year numbers, March of 207 is 904, and March of 28 is $10.

So I think that looks fairly attractive in terms of the the growth. Let's just go to the valuation page really quick. And again, I want to take a look at that peg. Peg coming in at B plus, which is very positive.

So I'd say even the quant as a hold, I would consider this a very positive hold. And when you look at a hold recommendation, you could get into the underlying metrics and determine whether you feel it's a positive hold or a negative hold. So you do exactly what I did. You go to the premium platform.

You click on growth. And if you click on growth and you have this site where there's a lot of green, that's pretty positive. And if the valuation framework is in line, that's fairly positive as well. We know the stock has come down for certain reasons. and we know those reasons probably have to do with the upcoming quarter analysts taking their estimates down.

But again, for the full year, they're fairly positive. And I do like the forward growth numbers. So overall, I would say this is a very positive hold.

Rena Sherbill: I think there's a Nancy Sinatra joke in there somewhere. Like these boots are made for holding or something like that.

Yesterday we had some news out of Costco (COST) that they were hiking prices on some some motor vehicle products. Costco is in the news again today, but for a better reason, they are partnering with DoorDash (DASH) to offer delivery from its US warehouse stores.

It already offers Costco in a few markets, including Australia, Sweden, and Puerto Rico. But the nationwide partnership is a first for DoorDash, which said Costco was among the most searched retailers, not yet on its US platform.

Steve, what do you have to say about Costco?

Steve Cress: Well, Costco is huge. they already do have distribution through Instacart and Uber Eats (UBER). So I think they're providing their customers with a a good experience. I'm not sure if it will be that meaningful to Costco.

The stock is barely up this morning. Costco's a store that everybody loves, but the the problem exists perpetually with the stock is it's always expensive and that's because people like to own it.

So when we take a look at the valuation, and I believe we mentioned this the other day, and you look at PE, you're typically seeing PEs with F grades and D minuses. So it's in the consumer staple sector. The multiple on the stock is 43 times versus the sector at 14 times.

It is very, very expensive. So versus the sector at 195% premium. So it's hard for an investor to get their head around that type of valuation.

When you look at Costco's growth, this is something that I consistently see. That overall growth rate will come in at a C+. But when I take a look at the underlying metrics, they look fairly strong.

I always lean towards a positive hold for Costco.

If we take a look at the Peg, even the Peg is freaking expensive. It's got a D for Peg, it's at a 76% premium. So it really is a rich and expensive stock. But, there is a growth element to it.

I'm just not sure the valuation framework is worth it.

In terms of what analyst thoughts are going forward, we have in the last 90 days, 11 analysts have revised up. Seven have revised down, and for the upcoming quarter, which is just in a few days, seven analysts have revised up and 8 have revised down.

So that's a pretty mixed picture. We can see the stock really isn't doing much here on the news and heading into earnings as well.

But I bet you're gonna ask about DoorDash next.

Rena Sherbill: You got it, Steve. You're really getting to know me.

Steve Cress: So DoorDash (DASH), we have a quant hold on. Wall Street Consensus has a buy. Seeking Alpha contributors have a buy. Year to date the stock is down almost 20 over the last fifty two weeks, it's down almost twenty five percent.

Year to date it's down about fourteen percent. So it is definitely underperforming the market.In terms of the consumer discretionary sector, it's a little bit brighter than the overall market.

Let's take a look at the momentum. So the one year and nine month momentum figures are not great. It's definitely underperformed this sector. So on a one-year basis, the stock being down almost 25%, as I mentioned, the sector's only down 12%. But if we look at the three-month performance, there is a bit of a change here.

We can see in the last three months, the stock is up 17% versus the sector down almost five percent. So that tells me over the last three months something is actually happening and it makes me inclined to check want to check out the company's growth.And when I look at the growth, this actually looks really positive. forward growth is at 26%. Bottom line growth, wow, it's 148% growth versus the sector.

So things are definitely turning around for DoorDash. I think that's beginning to be reflected in the stock price over the last three months.

In terms of analyst revisions, in the last 90 days, we've had 17 analysts have revised their estimates up. 15 have revised it down. So that's a very mixed picture there.

However, for the upcoming quarter, on November 4th, 23 analysts have revised up and only four have revised down. So it feels like a transformation is taking place with this company that's really being reflected over the last one month and three months into the stock as it's outperforming.

And I will say, going back for quite a few quarters, they have beat expectations in terms of bottom line estimates.So that's a pretty nice consistent picture to look at with that trend. I am kind of curious.

If we look at the sector, let's pull up Uber (UBER). Because I feel like Uber has had a bit of a turnaround, but that's a quant strong buy.

So let's see what the difference is here. So just like DoorDash's stock over the last year is down about 25%, and over the year to date time frame.Uber is down 13%. Let's take a look at the momentum versus the sector. So Uber has not had quite the same positive move over the last three months as DoorDash.

But the reason why Uber is more attractive is when we look at the valuation framework, we can see that it's actually pretty cheap compared to the industrial sector. It's only trading on a trailing basis at 15 times, the forward basis is 21 times, which puts it exactly in line with the industrial sector.

If we look at growth for Uber, we see some really good numbers. Forward growth is at almost 15%. but the EPS growth is not as attractive as DoorDash. But where Uber wins out is probably the long-term EPS, the three to five year CAGR.

This is with analysts who really cover the company closely and they have models that go out three to five years, have a growth rate of 26% for Uber. So that helps to bring up all the other grades because that is a more predictive factor for future stock price performance, that long-term growth.

So keep that in mind. That's 26% for Uber. Let's go back to DoorDash and see where that is. So for DoorDash, the long-term forward growth rate is 44%. So I'd say like the growth rate for DoorDash looks really good.

It's just that D minus on the valuation that's holding it back. It's a bit more expensive. When we get that D minus grade, that's kind of like a circuit breaker default. company typically automatically goes to hold. And it just is on the basis that it's very expensive.

And indeed, when you click on valuation, you just see a sea of red for all the valuation metrics for PE, for EV to EBITDA, for EBITDEBIT, price to sales, EV to sales.Just red, red, red, red, with the exception of PEG. When you combine that growth with the PE, it does look more attractive. And that valuation metric stands at a 41% discount.

So I would view this as a positive hold as well. I really like the growth numbers that I'm seeing from DoorDash and Uber as well. it's just that valuation is a bit rich for the company. So again I would look at this as a very positive hold. These boots are made for kicking.

Rena Sherbill: I appreciate that. You know, something I've learned in these conversations with you is that it's not well, I should say black and white. It's not a red and green affair with quant grades. There is nuance to it. And I think that's a lot of what you're providing in these conversations. And I've talked to you many times and I appreciate this new insight.

Steve Cress: Absolutely. Yeah, I was gonna say, a hold is a hold. It doesn't mean sell the stock. A lot of times when a a rating will drop from strong buy to hold, people are like, Should I sell it? Should I sell it?

And what I want to point out is in our Alpha Picks product, which has performed extraordinarily well, when we have a company in the Alpha Picks product and it falls to a hold, we actually keep it in there for 180 days as a hold.

So we wait a while and we really want to determine is it a positive hold or a negative hold? And you as a subscriber can do that by going into these underlying metrics and looking at the nitty gritty. So you can see here, this is really expensive, but that peg looks good. And then when you click on growth, you'd say this looks pretty rosy.

So if you own DoorDash shares, I would say definitely consider that a positive hold.

Rena Sherbill: Yes, yes. Appreciate the nuance. Have a great weekend, everybody. Have a great Friday. We are off on Monday, but we will talk to you on Tuesday.

Steve Cress: Look forward to seeing you Tuesday.

Follow Steve on YouTube, X, and TikTok to watch all of his Wall Street Breakfast episodes!

Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. (BOOT) Goldman Sachs Global Consumer and Retail Conference September 15, 2026 10:45 AM EDT

Company Participants

John Hazen - CEO & Director
Jim Watkins - CFO & Secretary

Conference Call Participants

Jonathan Keypour - Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., Research Division

Presentation

Jonathan Keypour
Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., Research Division

Welcome, everybody, to the Boot Barn fireside chat at this year's 2026 Goldman Sachs Global Consumer Conference. I'm John Keypour. I cover specialty apparel and retail. I'm very pleased to introduce John Hazen, CEO; and Jim Watkins, CFO. Hello, everybody. Thank you guys for being here.

Question-and-Answer Session

Jonathan Keypour
Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., Research Division

Let us jump into it. So I'm sure everybody knows that last night, there was an update -- business update to the quarter. And we heard a little bit more detail about September and August. So I guess, maybe if you guys want to very quickly encapsulate what was in the press release would be helpful.

John Hazen
CEO & Director

Yes. Just taking one step further back from there. This was a recap. We're almost through our Q2, but we kicked off the year with a plus 5% comp in our first quarter. And business then was flat in July. And we put out the release looking at all of August and the first 3 weeks of September, where in both August and September, we saw comps improve to a plus 2. And we expect to hit the high end of our guidance from a total sales standpoint and from an EPS standpoint and be within guidance from a same-store sales standpoint. So we feel great about Q1 and where we are with Q2 with just a couple of weeks left.

Jonathan Keypour
Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., Research Division

Okay. July's

It doesn't matter your age or experience: taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for all investors. Luckily, Zacks Premium offers several different ways to do both.

The research service features daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens, all of which will help you become a smarter, more confident investor.

It also includes access to the Zacks Style Scores.

What are the Zacks Style Scores? The Zacks Style Scores is a unique set of guidelines that rates stocks based on three popular investing types, and were developed as complementary indicators for the Zacks Rank. This combination helps investors choose securities with the highest chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.

Based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics, each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F. The better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform; an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on.

The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:

Value ScoreFor value investors, it's all about finding good stocks at good prices, and discovering which companies are trading under their true value before the broader market catches on. The Value Style Score utilizes ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and a host of other multiples to help pick out the most attractive and discounted stocks.

Growth ScoreWhile good value is important, growth investors are more focused on a company's financial strength and health, and its future outlook. The Growth Style Score takes projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow into account to uncover stocks that will see long-term, sustainable growth.

Momentum ScoreMomentum investors, who live by the saying "the trend is your friend," are most interested in taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Utilizing one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, among other factors, the Momentum Style Score can help determine favorable times to buy high-momentum stocks.

VGM ScoreWhat if you like to use all three types of investing? The VGM Score is a combination of all Style Scores, making it one of the most comprehensive indicators to use with the Zacks Rank. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, which helps narrow down the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum.

How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank The Zacks Rank is a proprietary stock-rating model that harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings expectations, to help investors build a successful portfolio.

#1 (Strong Buy) stocks have produced an unmatched +23.8% average annual return since 1988, which is more than double the S&P 500's performance over the same time frame. However, the Zacks Rank examines a ton of stocks, and there can be more than 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, and another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.

With more than 800 top-rated stocks to choose from, it can certainly feel overwhelming to pick the ones that are right for you and your investing journey.

That's where the Style Scores come in.

To maximize your returns, you want to buy stocks with the highest probability of success. This means picking stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B. If you find yourself looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, make sure they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.

The direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should always be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy, since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank.

Here's an example: a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one with Style Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings outlook, and a bigger chance its share price will decrease too.

Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.

Stock to Watch: Boot Barn (BOOT - Free Report) Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. is the largest lifestyle retailer in the United States, specializing in western and work-related footwear, apparel, and accessories. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Irvine, California, the company serves customers through an integrated network of brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce platforms. At the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2027, Boot Barn operated 566 stores across 49 states and complemented its physical presence with a nationwide digital platform that supports services such as buy online, pick up in store, curbside pickup, ship-from-store and in-store returns. 

BOOT is a #2 (Buy) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.

Additionally, the company could be a top pick for growth investors. BOOT has a Growth Style Score of B, forecasting year-over-year earnings growth of 22.6% for the current fiscal year.

For fiscal 2027, six analysts revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days, and the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.46 to $9.01 per share. BOOT boasts an average earnings surprise of +11.4%.

With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Growth and VGM Style Scores, BOOT should be on investors' short list.

Key Takeaways BOOT's merchandise margin rose 220 basis points, aided by tariff refunds and stronger product margins.Strong work boot demand drove sales and attracted new customers despite lower exclusive-brand penetration.BOOT now expects full-year merchandise margin to expand about 60 basis points, excluding tariff refunds. Boot Barn Holdings, Inc.’s (BOOT - Free Report) merchandise margin delivered better-than-expected results in the first quarter of fiscal 2027, with merchandise margin exceeding guidance. Merchandise margin increased 220 basis points during the quarter, driven by a 250-basis-point benefit from tariff refunds and a 60-basis-point expansion in product margin, partly offset by a 90-basis-point headwind from lapping low freight expense in the prior-year period.

Exclusive brands remain an important contributor to merchandise margin expansion. However, stronger-than-expected performance in the work boots business, particularly across third-party brands, resulted in exclusive-brand penetration coming in below expectations during the quarter. Despite the lower exclusive-brand mix, stronger product margins enabled merchandise margin to outperform expectations.

The continued strength of Boot Barn’s work boots business represents a positive development, reflecting healthy customer demand and driving incremental sales. Management also noted that the category is attracting new customers to the Boot Barn brand while further strengthening its position as a leading destination for work boots. Importantly, despite the modest change in exclusive-brand penetration, management now expects full-year merchandise margin to expand by approximately 60 basis points, excluding tariff refunds.

At the high end of fiscal 2027 guidance, merchandise margin is expected to reach approximately 52.2% of sales, up 130 basis points year over year, supported by tariff refunds, product-margin expansion and freight improvement. For the second quarter of fiscal 2027, management expects 51.8% of sales, up 140 basis points year over year, reflecting freight improvement, tariff refunds and product-margin expansion.

Overall, strength of the work boots business and continued product-margin improvement support Boot Barn’s merchandise-margin outlook. Management also identified buying economies of scale, improved full-price selling, supply-chain efficiencies and sourcing initiatives as additional drivers supporting the full-year merchandise-margin outlook.

Zacks Rundown for BOOTBoot Barn’s shares have lost 4.9% in the past three months compared with the industry’s decline of 9.6%.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

From a valuation standpoint, Boot Barn trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 16.21, higher than the industry’s average of 12.73. BOOT presently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BOOT’s current and next fiscal-year earnings implies year-over-year rallies of 22.6% and 10.5%, respectively.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Other Stocks to ConsiderSome other top-ranked stocks have been discussed below:

Victoria’s Secret & Co. (VSXY - Free Report) operates as a specialty retailer of women's intimate apparel and other apparel and beauty products worldwide. At present, VSXY carries a Zacks Rank of 2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for VSXY’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings implies growth of 9.2% and 57.3%, respectively, from the year-ago figures. VSXY has delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 48.9%, on average.

FIGS, Inc. (FIGS - Free Report) operates as a direct-to-consumer healthcare apparel and lifestyle company in the United States and internationally. At present, FIGS carries a Zacks Rank of 2.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FIGS’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings implies growth of 18.2% and 89.5%, respectively, from the year-ago figures. FIGS has delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 201.8%, on average.

Fossil Group, Inc. (FOSL - Free Report) designs, develops, markets, and distributes consumer fashion accessories in the United States, Europe, Asia, and internationally. At present, FOSL carries a Zacks Rank of 2.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FOSL’s current fiscal-year sales indicates a decline of 4%, while the same for earnings indicates growth of 96.7% from the year-ago figures. FOSL delivered a trailing four-quarter negative earnings surprise of 236.2%, on average.

Key Takeaways BOOT's work boots delivered high-single-digit comparable sales growth, its strongest pace in several years.Both Pull-On and Lace-Up styles grew, supported by new third-party brands and deeper product investments.Work apparel reached high-single-digit growth in July, with gains spanning both FR and non-FR products. Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. (BOOT - Free Report) reported continued acceleration in its work business following efforts to reinvigorate the category last year. The company improved in-store merchandising, increased its marketing focus on the work business and invested in key third-party brands to strengthen its assortment for work customers. Management cited these initiatives as part of the progress seen in the category.

The work boots business delivered high-single-digit comparable sales growth in the first quarter of fiscal 2027. This marked the fifth consecutive quarter of growth for the category and represented its strongest growth in the past few years. The performance also reflected the continued acceleration management has seen in the work business.

Management said that the high-single-digit growth in work boots was supported by both Pull-On and Lace-Up styles. Lace-Up boots performed more strongly, but growth was not limited to a single product type. Management also noted that the category's performance was not being driven by oil-related demand. New third-party brands and a broader assortment of successful products from existing third-party brands also supported the category.

The work apparel business continued to show improving momentum, with comparable sales strengthening over the last couple of quarters and reaching high-single-digit growth in July. Performance included both Flame Resistant (FR) and non-FR products, which management described as appearing broad-based across the work apparel assortment rather than being driven by a single product category.

Overall, Boot Barn's work category continued to demonstrate positive momentum, supported by changes to merchandising, marketing and product assortment, as well as resilient demand from its needs-based customers. Management also said it expects the strength in its third-party work boots business to continue, although the transcript does not provide a specific forecast for the future growth rate of the overall work category.

Zacks Rundown for BOOTBoot Barn’s shares have lost 8.8% in the past three months compared with the industry’s decline of 6.2%.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

From a valuation standpoint, Boot Barn trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 16.29, higher than the industry’s average of 13.20. BOOT presently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BOOT’s current and next fiscal-year earnings implies year-over-year rallies of 22.6% and 10.5%, respectively.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Other Stocks to ConsiderSome other top-ranked stocks have been discussed below:

Victoria’s Secret & Co. (VSXY - Free Report) operates as a specialty retailer of women's intimate apparel and other apparel and beauty products worldwide. At present, VSXY sports a Zacks Rank of 1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for VSXY’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings implies growth of 9.2% and 57%, respectively, from the year-ago figures. VSXY has delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 81.9%, on average.

FIGS, Inc. (FIGS - Free Report) operates as a direct-to-consumer healthcare apparel and lifestyle company in the United States and internationally. At present, FIGS carries a Zacks Rank of 2.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FIGS’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings implies growth of 18.2% and 89.5%, respectively, from the year-ago figures. FIGS has delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 201.8%, on average.

Fossil Group, Inc. (FOSL - Free Report) designs, develops, markets, and distributes consumer fashion accessories in the United States, Europe, Asia, and internationally. At present, FOSL carries a Zacks Rank of 2.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FOSL’s current fiscal-year sales indicates a decline of 4%, while the same for earnings indicates growth of 96.7% from the year-ago figures. FOSL delivered a trailing four-quarter negative earnings surprise of 236.2%, on average.

Key Takeaways BOOT's denim posted double-digit growth, leading the high-single-digit rise in apparel.The company moved core women's denim to the denim wall while highlighting premium styles upfront.Bootcut jeans remain dominant, while wider silhouettes represent a small part of women's denim sales. Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. (BOOT - Free Report) delivered strong momentum in its denim category during the first quarter of fiscal 2027, with denim posting double-digit growth and leading the high-single-digit increase in men's and ladies' apparel. The performance was particularly notable as the company was cycling exceptional denim growth from the prior year.

Against this backdrop, the company is making targeted changes to its denim merchandising, building on adjustments previously made to men's denim. With the Back-to-School floor set beginning in July, Boot Barn revised its women's denim presentation by moving basic core denim to the denim wall, while placing more premium styles upfront and remerchandising certain brands. The changes are designed to make core women's denim easier to locate for replenishment needs while creating more compelling product stories and highlighting more interesting styles on nesting tables and other fixtures.

Boot Barn also continues to see some shifts in denim silhouettes, although traditional bootcut jeans remain by far the dominant style. Management noted a modest move toward wider bootleg silhouettes among some Western retailers, but emphasized that these newer styles represent a very small portion of the women's denim business. Women's denim itself accounts for roughly 5% of Boot Barn's overall business. The merchandising changes therefore maintain a clear focus on core replenishment denim while giving greater visibility to premium styles and newer product stories. Bootcut jeans continue to account for the vast majority of denim sales, and newer silhouettes remain a small part of the women's denim business.

Overall, Boot Barn’s strong denim growth, continued dominance of core bootcut styles and targeted merchandising enhancements provide a solid foundation for maintaining category momentum, while selective fashion updates could further strengthen the customer appeal of its women’s denim assortment.

Zacks Rundown for BOOTBoot Barn’s shares have gained 7.1% in the past three months against the industry’s decline of 6.5%. BOOT presently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

From a valuation standpoint, Boot Barn trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 17.44, higher than the industry’s average of 13.20.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BOOT’s current and next fiscal-year earnings implies year-over-year rallies of 22.6% and 10.5%, respectively.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Other Stocks to ConsiderSome other top-ranked stocks have been discussed below:

Victoria’s Secret & Co. (VSXY - Free Report) operates as a specialty retailer of women's intimate apparel and other apparel and beauty products worldwide. At present, VSXY sports a Zacks Rank of 1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for VSXY’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings implies growth of 9.1% and 56.7%, respectively, from the year-ago figures. VSXY has delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 81.9%, on average.

FIGS, Inc. (FIGS - Free Report) operates as a direct-to-consumer healthcare apparel and lifestyle company in the United States and internationally. At present, FIGS carries a Zacks Rank of 2.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FIGS’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings implies growth of 18.2% and 89.5%, respectively, from the year-ago figures. FIGS has delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 201.8%, on average.

Fossil Group, Inc. (FOSL - Free Report) designs, develops, markets, and distributes consumer fashion accessories in the United States, Europe, Asia, and internationally. At present, FOSL carries a Zacks Rank of 2.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FOSL’s current fiscal-year sales indicates a decline of 4%, while the same for earnings indicates growth of 96.7% from the year-ago figures. FOSL delivered a trailing four-quarter negative earnings surprise of 236.2%, on average.

Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in shares of Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BOOT – Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,408,000. Deutsche Bank AG owned 0.15% of Boot Barn at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Boot Barn during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Boot Barn in the third quarter valued at about $49,000. Danske Bank A S raised its holdings in shares of Boot Barn by 200.0% during the 4th quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Boot Barn by 284.1% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 338 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Boot Barn by 702.3% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 353 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 309 shares during the period.

Boot Barn Stock Performance NYSE:BOOT opened at $164.44 on Monday. Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $133.18 and a one year high of $210.25. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $161.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $165.42. The stock has a market cap of $4.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.71.

Boot Barn (NYSE:BOOT – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.60. Boot Barn had a return on equity of 18.78% and a net margin of 10.35%.The firm had revenue of $593.51 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $583.15 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.74 earnings per share. Boot Barn’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. Boot Barn has set its FY 2027 guidance at 8.800-9.230 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 1.550-1.650 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. will post 9.18 EPS for the current year. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades A number of equities analysts have weighed in on BOOT shares. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Boot Barn from $230.00 to $226.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 15th. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Boot Barn in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Boot Barn from $224.00 to $206.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 15th. UBS Group set a $225.00 target price on shares of Boot Barn in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Stephens raised their price target on shares of Boot Barn from $196.00 to $207.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Boot Barn has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $219.55.

Get Our Latest Stock Report on BOOT

Boot Barn Profile (Free Report)

Boot Barn, Inc is a leading specialty retailer focused on western and work-related footwear, apparel and accessories. The company operates full-price and outlet retail stores under the Boot Barn and BootBarn.com brands, offering a wide assortment of cowboy boots, work boots, casual and fashion footwear, western and work apparel, hats, belts and related accessories. In addition to its brick-and-mortar network, Boot Barn maintains an e-commerce platform to serve customers seeking ranch-and-rodeo style clothing and rugged workwear from coast to coast.

Founded in 1978 in Southern California, Boot Barn began as a single store catering to ranchers, farmworkers and western enthusiasts.

Featured Stories Five stocks we like better than Boot Barn VIG, VYM, and VYMI: Which Vanguard Dividend ETF Is Right for You? 3 Closed-End Funds to Maximize Dividend Payments Rocket Lab’s Sell-Off Is Fading—Is It Finally Safe to Buy? $27 Billion in Buybacks: 3 Stocks Betting Their Strong Runs Aren’t Over Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BOOT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BOOT – Free Report).

Receive News & Ratings for Boot Barn Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Boot Barn and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.

Boot Barn Holdings offers an attractive growth profile with disciplined expansion, robust earnings growth, and a reasonable PEG valuation near 1.08. BOOT targets 70 new store openings in FY27, aiming for a long-term goal of 1,200 locations, supporting sustained double-digit earnings growth. Same-store sales growth and merchandise margin expansion remain key drivers, with management projecting 4% comp growth and 16% total sales growth for the year.

Shares of Boot Barn (BOOT - Free Report) have gained 8.4% over the past four weeks to close the last trading session at $160.22, but there could still be a solid upside left in the stock if short-term price targets of Wall Street analysts are any indication. Going by the price targets, the mean estimate of $217.33 indicates a potential upside of 35.6%.

The mean estimate comprises 15 short-term price targets with a standard deviation of $30.94. While the lowest estimate of $159.00 indicates a 0.8% decline from the current price level, the most optimistic analyst expects the stock to surge 76% to reach $282.00. It's very important to note the standard deviation here, as it helps understand the variability of the estimates. The smaller the standard deviation, the greater the agreement among analysts.

While the consensus price target is a much-coveted metric for investors, solely banking on this metric to make an investment decision may not be wise at all. That's because the ability and unbiasedness of analysts in setting price targets have long been questionable.

However, an impressive consensus price target is not the only factor that indicates a potential upside in BOOT. This view is strengthened by the agreement among analysts that the company will report better earnings than what they estimated earlier. Though a positive trend in earnings estimate revisions doesn't give any idea as to how much the stock could surge, it has proven effective in predicting an upside.

Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Here's What You Should Know About Analysts' Price TargetsAccording to researchers at several universities across the globe, a price target is one of many pieces of information about a stock that misleads investors far more often than it guides. In fact, empirical research shows that price targets set by several analysts, irrespective of the extent of agreement, rarely indicate where the price of a stock could actually be heading.

While Wall Street analysts have deep knowledge of a company's fundamentals and the sensitivity of its business to economic and industry issues, many of them tend to set overly optimistic price targets. Are you wondering why?

They usually do that to drum up interest in shares of companies that their firms either have existing business relationships with or are looking to be associated with. In other words, business incentives of firms covering a stock often result in inflated price targets set by analysts.

However, a tight clustering of price targets, which is represented by a low standard deviation, indicates that analysts have a high degree of agreement about the direction and magnitude of a stock's price movement. While that doesn't necessarily mean the stock will hit the average price target, it could be a good starting point for further research aimed at identifying the potential fundamental driving forces.

That said, while investors should not entirely ignore price targets, making an investment decision solely based on them could lead to disappointing ROI. So, price targets should always be treated with a high degree of skepticism.

Here's Why There Could be Plenty of Upside Left in BOOTAnalysts' growing optimism over the company's earnings prospects, as indicated by strong agreement among them in revising EPS estimates higher, could be a legitimate reason to expect an upside in the stock. That's because empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.

For the current year, six estimates have moved higher over the last 30 days compared to no negative revision. As a result, the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased 7.3%.

Moreover, BOOT currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), which means it is in the top 20% of more than 4,000 stocks that we rank based on four factors related to earnings estimates. Given an impressive externally-audited track record, this is a more conclusive indication of the stock's potential upside in the near term. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>> .

Therefore, while the consensus price target may not be a reliable indicator of how much BOOT could gain, the direction of price movement it implies does appear to be a good guide.

Extension Continues Boot Hill's Sports Wagering Management Through 2030

, /PRNewswire/ -- Butler National Corporation (OTCQX: BUKS) announces that the Boot Hill Casino & Resort, managed by Butler National subsidiary BHCMC, LLC ("Boot Hill Casino"), executed two agreements extending existing sports wagering contract relationships through 2030.

Butler National received a three-year extension of its Lottery Sports Wagering Management Contract with the Kansas Lottery, which provides for Boot Hill Casino's management of sports wagering operations conducted through the Boot Hill Casino & Resort. In 2022, the State of Kansas authorized Kansas Lottery-owned and operated sports wagering, which is managed by the state's lottery gaming facility managers. The initial sports wager management contract was a five-year agreement. The newly executed extension maintains the same material terms of the original agreement and extends Boot Hill's management of sports wagering through 2030.

In connection with the Kansas Lottery contract extension, Boot Hill Casino and DraftKings have agreed to amend and extend for ten years their sports wagering arrangement, which facilitates online and mobile sports wagering. The extension includes updated commercial terms that reflect current market conditions. The DraftKings agreement is subject to continuing Boot Hill Casino management authority under the agreement with the Kansas Lottery.

Ryan Deutsch, General Manager of Boot Hill Casino & Resort, commented: "We appreciate the Kansas Lottery's continued confidence in Boot Hill Casino & Resort. We are also very pleased to extend our successful relationship with DraftKings. Sports wagering has become an important component of our entertainment offering and continues to attract visitors from across Kansas and neighboring states. This extension provides long-term stability for our sports wagering platform and allows us to continue investing in the guest experience and sportsbook operations."

Deutsch added: "Boot Hill remains focused on driving tourism, entertainment, and economic activity in Southwest Kansas while generating meaningful revenue for the State of Kansas. We are proud of the role our property plays in supporting both objectives."

About Boot Hill Casino & Resort

Boot Hill Casino & Resort, managed by BHCMC, LLC and Butler National Service Corporation, wholly-owned subsidiaries of Butler National Corporation (OTCQX: BUKS), features over 500 electronic gaming machines, 15 table games, a 150-seat casual dining restaurant known as Firesides at Boot Hill, and an attractive DraftKings Sportsbook.

The lottery facility games at Boot Hill Casino & Resort are owned and operated by the Kansas Lottery. The Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission provides regulatory oversight for the casino.

About Butler National Corporation

Butler National Corporation operates in the Aerospace and Professional Services business segments. The Professional Services business segment includes the operations at the Boot Hill Casino & Resort. The Aerospace Products segment includes the design, manufacture, sale and service of structural modifications, design, integration and installation of electronic equipment, systems and technologies that enhance aircraft operations, and the design, manufacture and sale of defense related articles. Additionally, we operate FAA Repair Stations. Companies in Aerospace Products concentrate on products and services for Learjet, Textron Beechcraft, King Air, and Textron Cessna turboprop aircraft. Butler National-Tempe designs and manufactures robust electronic controls and cabling.

Forward-Looking Information

Statements made in this press release, reports, and proxy statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, communications to stockholders and oral statements made by representatives of the Company that are not historical in nature, or that state the Company or management intentions, hopes, beliefs, expectations or predictions of the future, may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"). Forward-looking statements can often be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, such as "could," "should," "will," "intended," "continue," "believe," "may," "expect," "anticipate," "goal," "forecast," "plan," "guidance" or "estimate" or the negative of these words, variations thereof or similar expressions. However, the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or results. They involve risks, uncertainties, and assumptions. It is important to note that any such performance and actual results, financial condition or business, could differ materially from those expressed in such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences, many of which are outside of our control, include, but are not limited to: (i) customer concentration risk; (ii) dependence on government spending; (iii) government shutdown; (iv) industry specific business cycles; (v) regulatory hurdles in the launch of new products; (vi) loss of key personnel, including executive officers; (vii) the geographic location of our casino; (viii) fixed-price contracts; (ix) international sales; (x) changing U.S. trade policy and impacts of tariffs; (xi) need to acquire hangar space for substantial growth; (xii) future acquisitions; (xiii) supply chain and labor issues; (xiv) customer demand; (xv) insurance costs and insufficient insurance for aircraft modifications; (xvi) cyber security threats; (xvii) fraud, theft and cheating at our casino; (xviii) dependence on third-party platforms to offer sports wagering; (xix) outside factors influence the profitability of sports wagering and legacy gaming; (xx) change of control restrictions; (xxi) significant and expensive governmental regulation across our industries; (xxii) U.S. Government action with respect to contracts; (xxiii) failure by the Company or its stockholders to maintain applicable gaming licenses; (xxiv) evolving political and legislative initiatives in gaming; (xxv) extensive and increasing taxation of gaming revenues; (xxvi) changes in regulations of financial reporting; (xxvii) the availability of financing; (xxviii) potential impairment losses; (xxix) marketability restrictions of our common stock; (xxx) the possibility of a reverse-stock split; (xxxi) market competition by larger competitors; (xxxii) acts of terrorism and war; (xxxiii) climate change, inclement weather and natural disasters; (xxxiv) rising inflation; (xxxv) failure of risk management; (xxxvi) effectiveness of internal controls; and (xxxvii) other factors discussed in Item 1A of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K and other filings the Company makes with the SEC from time to time. We undertake no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect changed assumptions, the occurrence of unanticipated events or changes in future operating results, financial condition or business over time, except as expressly required by federal securities laws.

For more information, contact:

Butler National Corporation Investor Relations
(913) 780-9595

SOURCE Boot Hill Casino & Resort

Taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for new and old investors, and Zacks Premium offers many different ways to do both.

The popular research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor, giving you access to daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens.

Zacks Premium also includes the Zacks Style Scores.

What are the Zacks Style Scores? Developed alongside the Zacks Rank, the Zacks Style Scores are a group of complementary indicators that help investors pick stocks with the best chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.

Each stock is given an alphabetic rating of A, B, C, D or F based on their value, growth, and momentum qualities. With this system, an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on, meaning the better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform.

The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:

Value ScoreFinding good stocks at good prices, and discovering which companies are trading under their true value, are what value investors like to focus on. So, the Value Style Score takes into account ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and a host of other multiples to highlight the most attractive and discounted stocks.

Growth ScoreWhile good value is important, growth investors are more focused on a company's financial strength and health, and its future outlook. The Growth Style Score takes projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow into account to uncover stocks that will see long-term, sustainable growth.

Momentum ScoreMomentum traders and investors live by the saying "the trend is your friend." This investing style is all about taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Employing factors like one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, the Momentum Style Score can indicate favorable times to build a position in high-momentum stocks.

VGM ScoreIf you like to use all three kinds of investing, then the VGM Score is for you. It's a combination of all Style Scores, and is an important indicator to use with the Zacks Rank. The VGM Score rates each stock on their shared weighted styles, narrowing down the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum.

How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank The Zacks Rank, which is a proprietary stock-rating model, employs earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings expectations, to make building a winning portfolio easier.

#1 (Strong Buy) stocks have produced an unmatched +23.94% average annual return since 1988, which is more than double the S&P 500's performance over the same time frame. However, the Zacks Rank examines a ton of stocks, and there can be more than 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, and another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.

With more than 800 top-rated stocks to choose from, it can certainly feel overwhelming to pick the ones that are right for you and your investing journey.

That's where the Style Scores come in.

To have the best chance of big returns, you'll want to always consider stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B, which will give you the highest probability of success. If you're looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, it's important they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.

The direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should always be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy, since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank.

A stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, for instance, even one with Scores of A and B, will still have a declining earnings forecast, and a greater chance its share price will fall too.

Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.

Stock to Watch: Boot Barn (BOOT - Free Report) Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. is the largest lifestyle retailer in the United States, specializing in western and work-related footwear, apparel, and accessories. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Irvine, California, the company serves customers through an integrated network of brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce platforms. At the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2027, Boot Barn operated 566 stores across 49 states and complemented its physical presence with a nationwide digital platform that supports services such as buy online, pick up in store, curbside pickup, ship-from-store and in-store returns. 

BOOT is a #2 (Buy) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.

Additionally, the company could be a top pick for growth investors. BOOT has a Growth Style Score of B, forecasting year-over-year earnings growth of 22.6% for the current fiscal year.

Six analysts revised their earnings estimate higher in the last 60 days for fiscal 2027, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.46 to $9.01 per share. BOOT also boasts an average earnings surprise of +11.4%.

With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Growth and VGM Style Scores, BOOT should be on investors' short list.

Taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for new and old investors, and Zacks Premium offers many different ways to do both.

Featuring daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens, the research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor.

Zacks Premium also includes the Zacks Style Scores.

What are the Zacks Style Scores? The Zacks Style Scores, developed alongside the Zacks Rank, are complementary indicators that rate stocks based on three widely-followed investing methodologies; they also help investors pick stocks with the best chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.

Based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics, each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F. The better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform; an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on.

The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:

Value ScoreValue investors love finding good stocks at good prices, especially before the broader market catches on to a stock's true value. Utilizing ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and many other multiples, the Value Style Score identifies the most attractive and most discounted stocks.

Growth ScoreWhile good value is important, growth investors are more focused on a company's financial strength and health, and its future outlook. The Growth Style Score takes projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow into account to uncover stocks that will see long-term, sustainable growth.

Momentum ScoreMomentum trading is all about taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook, and these investors live by the saying "the trend is your friend." The Momentum Style Score can pinpoint good times to build a position in a stock, using factors like one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates.

VGM ScoreWhat if you like to use all three types of investing? The VGM Score is a combination of all Style Scores, making it one of the most comprehensive indicators to use with the Zacks Rank. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, which helps narrow down the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum.

How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank The Zacks Rank is a proprietary stock-rating model that harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings expectations, to help investors build a successful portfolio.

Investors can count on the Zacks Rank's success, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +23.94% average annual return since 1988, more than double the S&P 500's performance. But the model rates a large number of stocks, and there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.

With more than 800 top-rated stocks to choose from, it can certainly feel overwhelming to pick the ones that are right for you and your investing journey.

That's where the Style Scores come in.

To maximize your returns, you want to buy stocks with the highest probability of success. This means picking stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B. If you find yourself looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, make sure they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.

Since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank, the direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy.

Here's an example: a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one with Style Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings outlook, and a bigger chance its share price will decrease too.

Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.

Stock to Watch: Boot Barn (BOOT - Free Report) Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. is the largest lifestyle retailer in the United States, specializing in western and work-related footwear, apparel, and accessories. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Irvine, California, the company serves customers through an integrated network of brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce platforms. At the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2027, Boot Barn operated 566 stores across 49 states and complemented its physical presence with a nationwide digital platform that supports services such as buy online, pick up in store, curbside pickup, ship-from-store and in-store returns. 

BOOT is a #2 (Buy) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.

Momentum investors should take note of this Retail-Wholesale stock. BOOT has a Momentum Style Score of B, and shares are up 9.5% over the past four weeks.

Six analysts revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days for fiscal 2027. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.46 to $9.01 per share. BOOT boasts an average earnings surprise of +11.4%.

With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Momentum and VGM Style Scores, BOOT should be on investors' short list.

Taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for new and old investors, and Zacks Premium offers many different ways to do both.

The popular research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor, giving you access to daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens.

Zacks Premium includes access to the Zacks Style Scores as well.

What are the Zacks Style Scores? Developed alongside the Zacks Rank, the Zacks Style Scores are a group of complementary indicators that help investors pick stocks with the best chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.

Based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics, each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F. The better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform; an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on.

The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:

Value ScoreValue investors love finding good stocks at good prices, especially before the broader market catches on to a stock's true value. Utilizing ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and many other multiples, the Value Style Score identifies the most attractive and most discounted stocks.

Growth ScoreGrowth investors are more concerned with a stock's future prospects, and the overall financial health and strength of a company. Thus, the Growth Style Score analyzes characteristics like projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow to find stocks that will see sustainable growth over time.

Momentum ScoreMomentum investors, who live by the saying "the trend is your friend," are most interested in taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Utilizing one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, among other factors, the Momentum Style Score can help determine favorable times to buy high-momentum stocks.

VGM ScoreWhat if you like to use all three types of investing? The VGM Score is a combination of all Style Scores, making it one of the most comprehensive indicators to use with the Zacks Rank. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, which helps narrow down the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum.

How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank A proprietary stock-rating model, the Zacks Rank utilizes the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings outlook, to help investors create a successful portfolio.

It's highly successful, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +23.94% average annual return since 1988. That's more than double the S&P 500. But because of the large number of stocks we rate, there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.

But it can feel overwhelming to pick the right stocks for you and your investing goals with over 800 top-rated stocks to choose from.

That's where the Style Scores come in.

To maximize your returns, you want to buy stocks with the highest probability of success. This means picking stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B. If you find yourself looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, make sure they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.

The direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should always be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy, since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank.

For instance, a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one that boasts Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings forecast, and a much greater likelihood its share price will decline as well.

Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.

Stock to Watch: Boot Barn (BOOT - Free Report) Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. is the largest lifestyle retailer in the United States, specializing in western and work-related footwear, apparel, and accessories. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Irvine, California, the company serves customers through an integrated network of brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce platforms. At the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2027, Boot Barn operated 566 stores across 49 states and complemented its physical presence with a nationwide digital platform that supports services such as buy online, pick up in store, curbside pickup, ship-from-store and in-store returns. 

BOOT is a #2 (Buy) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.

It also boasts a Value Style Score of B thanks to attractive valuation metrics like a forward P/E ratio of 18.15; value investors should take notice.

Six analysts revised their earnings estimate higher in the last 60 days for fiscal 2027, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.46 to $9.01 per share. BOOT also boasts an average earnings surprise of +11.4%.

With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Value and VGM Style Scores, BOOT should be on investors' short list.

Shares of Boot Barn (BOOT - Free Report) have gained 3.3% over the past four weeks to close the last trading session at $163.28, but there could still be a solid upside left in the stock if short-term price targets of Wall Street analysts are any indication. Going by the price targets, the mean estimate of $215.6 indicates a potential upside of 32%.

The mean estimate comprises 15 short-term price targets with a standard deviation of $30.94. While the lowest estimate of $159.00 indicates a 2.6% decline from the current price level, the most optimistic analyst expects the stock to surge 72.7% to reach $282.00. It's very important to note the standard deviation here, as it helps understand the variability of the estimates. The smaller the standard deviation, the greater the agreement among analysts.

While the consensus price target is highly sought after by investors, the ability and unbiasedness of analysts in setting price targets have long been questionable. And investors making investment decisions solely based on this tool would arguably do themselves a disservice.

However, an impressive consensus price target is not the only factor that indicates a potential upside in BOOT. This view is strengthened by the agreement among analysts that the company will report better earnings than what they estimated earlier. Though a positive trend in earnings estimate revisions doesn't give any idea as to how much the stock could surge, it has proven effective in predicting an upside.

Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Here's What You Should Know About Analysts' Price TargetsAccording to researchers at several universities across the globe, a price target is one of many pieces of information about a stock that misleads investors far more often than it guides. In fact, empirical research shows that price targets set by several analysts, irrespective of the extent of agreement, rarely indicate where the price of a stock could actually be heading.

While Wall Street analysts have deep knowledge of a company's fundamentals and the sensitivity of its business to economic and industry issues, many of them tend to set overly optimistic price targets. Are you wondering why?

They usually do that to drum up interest in shares of companies that their firms either have existing business relationships with or are looking to be associated with. In other words, business incentives of firms covering a stock often result in inflated price targets set by analysts.

However, a tight clustering of price targets, which is represented by a low standard deviation, indicates that analysts have a high degree of agreement about the direction and magnitude of a stock's price movement. While that doesn't necessarily mean the stock will hit the average price target, it could be a good starting point for further research aimed at identifying the potential fundamental driving forces.

That said, while investors should not entirely ignore price targets, making an investment decision solely based on them could lead to disappointing ROI. So, price targets should always be treated with a high degree of skepticism.

Why BOOT Could Witness a Solid UpsideThere has been increasing optimism among analysts lately about the company's earnings prospects, as indicated by strong agreement among them in revising EPS estimates higher. And that could be a legitimate reason to expect an upside in the stock. After all, empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.

For the current year, six estimates have moved higher over the last 30 days compared to no negative revision. As a result, the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased 7.3%.

Moreover, BOOT currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), which means it is in the top 5% of more than 4,000 stocks that we rank based on four factors related to earnings estimates. Given an impressive externally-audited track record, this is a more conclusive indication of the stock's potential upside in the near term. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>> .

Therefore, while the consensus price target may not be a reliable indicator of how much BOOT could gain, the direction of price movement it implies does appear to be a good guide.

Investors seek growth stocks to capitalize on above-average growth in financials that help these securities grab the market's attention and produce exceptional returns. However, it isn't easy to find a great growth stock.

In addition to volatility, these stocks carry above-average risk by their very nature. Also, one could end up losing from a stock whose growth story is actually over or nearing its end.

However, it's pretty easy to find cutting-edge growth stocks with the help of the Zacks Growth Style Score (part of the Zacks Style Scores system), which looks beyond the traditional growth attributes to analyze a company's real growth prospects.

Boot Barn (BOOT - Free Report) is one such stock that our proprietary system currently recommends. The company not only has a favorable Growth Score, but also carries a top Zacks Rank.

Research shows that stocks carrying the best growth features consistently beat the market. And returns are even better for stocks that possess the combination of a Growth Score of A or B and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy).

Here are three of the most important factors that make the stock of this Western apparel and footwear retailer a great growth pick right now.

Earnings GrowthEarnings growth is arguably the most important factor, as stocks exhibiting exceptionally surging profit levels tend to attract the attention of most investors. For growth investors, double-digit earnings growth is highly preferable, as it is often perceived as an indication of strong prospects (and stock price gains) for the company under consideration.

While the historical EPS growth rate for Boot Barn is 6.3%, investors should actually focus on the projected growth. The company's EPS is expected to grow 22.6% this year, crushing the industry average, which calls for EPS growth of 20%.

Cash Flow GrowthWhile cash is the lifeblood of any business, higher-than-average cash flow growth is more important and beneficial for growth-oriented companies than for mature companies. That's because, growth in cash flow enables these companies to expand their businesses without depending on expensive outside funds.

Right now, year-over-year cash flow growth for Boot Barn is 26.1%, which is higher than many of its peers. In fact, the rate compares to the industry average of -5.7%.

While investors should actually consider the current cash flow growth, it's worth taking a look at the historical rate too for putting the current reading into proper perspective. The company's annualized cash flow growth rate has been 21.3% over the past 3-5 years versus the industry average of 14.2%.

Promising Earnings Estimate RevisionsBeyond the metrics outlined above, investors should consider the trend in earnings estimate revisions. A positive trend is a plus here. Empirical research shows that there is a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.

There have been upward revisions in current-year earnings estimates for Boot Barn. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has surged 7.3% over the past month.

Bottom LineWhile the overall earnings estimate revisions have made Boot Barn a Zacks Rank #1 stock, it has earned itself a Growth Score of B based on a number of factors, including the ones discussed above.

You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

This combination indicates that Boot Barn is a potential outperformer and a solid choice for growth investors.

Here are three stocks with buy rank and strong value characteristics for investors to consider today, August 4:

Slide Insurance Holdings, Inc. (SLDE - Free Report) : This insurance company carries a Zacks Rank #1, and has witnessed the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current year earnings increasing 6.6% over the last 60 days.

Slide has a price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) of 5.34, compared with 12.40 for the industry. The company possesses a Value Score of A.

PicS N.V. (PICS - Free Report) : This financial services company carries a Zacks Rank #1, and has witnessed the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current year earnings increasing 13.3% over the last 60 days.

PicS has a price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) of 9.71, compared with 22.82 for the S&P 500. The company possesses a Value Score of B.

Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. (BOOT - Free Report) : This lifestyle retail chain carries a Zacks Rank #1, and has witnessed the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current year earnings increasing 4.3% over the last 60 days.

Boot Barn has a price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) of 16.71, compared with 22.82 for the S&P 500. The company possesses a Value Score of B.

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Learn more about the Value score and how it is calculated here.

Key Takeaways Boot Barn beat earnings and sales estimates, with both measures rising year over yearNew stores, 4.7% same-store sales growth and a 13.4% e-commerce gain supported revenues.Tariff refunds lifted margins, while Boot Barn raised its fiscal 2027 earnings and sales outlook. Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. (BOOT - Free Report) reported first-quarter fiscal 2027 results, wherein both top and bottom lines surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate and increased year over year. The western and workwear retailer benefited from strong new-store productivity, same-store sales growth, robust e-commerce demand and merchandise margin expansion. Management also raised its fiscal 2027 outlook, reflecting confidence in continued execution despite a softer start to the second quarter.

The quarterly earnings of $2.29 per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.69 by 35.5% and increased 31.6% from $1.74 reported in the year-ago quarter. Net sales rose 17.7% year over year to $593.5 million, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $582 million by 2%. Sales growth was driven by new-store expansion and positive comparable sales across both retail stores and e-commerce.

Stores and Digital Support Boot Barn's Sales GrowthConsolidated same-store sales increased 4.7% during the quarter. Retail store same-store sales rose 3.8%, supported by a 3% increase in average unit retail, while transactions remained approximately flat. E-commerce same-store sales jumped 13.4%, driven by double-digit growth at bootbarn.com, underscoring continued strength in the company's omnichannel strategy.

Boot Barn opened 27 new stores during the quarter compared with 14 in the prior-year period, ending the quarter with 566 stores across 49 states. Management continues to expect 70 new store openings in fiscal 2027 and reiterated its long-term opportunity to expand to approximately 1,200 U.S. locations. New locations are projected to generate average annual sales of about $3.2 million, with an investment payback period of less than two years.

Across merchandise categories, men's western boots posted mid-single-digit growth, while women's western boots declined at a mid-single-digit rate against difficult prior-year comparisons. Men's and women's apparel increased at a high-single-digit pace, led by double-digit denim growth. Work boots delivered high-single-digit growth, marking the category's fifth consecutive quarter of positive growth, aided by improved merchandising, stronger marketing support and investments in key third-party brands.

Boot Barn Expands Margins on Tariff BenefitsGross profit increased 21.6% to $239.9 million, with the gross margin expanding about 130 basis points to 40.4%. Merchandise margin expanded by 220 basis points, including a 250-basis-point benefit from $14.7 million of tariff refunds and 60 basis points of product-margin expansion. These gains were partly offset by a 90-basis-point freight headwind.

SG&A expenses rose 18.1% to $149.4 million and represented 25.2% of sales, up roughly 10 basis points. Operating income climbed 28% to $90.5 million, while the operating margin expanded to 15.3% from 14% in the prior-year quarter.

BOOT Maintains Financial FlexibilityOperating cash flow rose to $83.8 million from $73.9 million a year earlier. Capital expenditures increased to $51.1 million from $31.5 million as the retailer continued investing in its store base and infrastructure. The company expects capital expenditures, net of estimated landlord-tenant allowances, between $125 million and $130 million for fiscal 2027.

BOOT ended the quarter with $139.3 million in cash and no borrowings under its revolving credit facility. The company repurchased more than 158,451 shares for $25 million during the quarter. It also doubled its revolving credit capacity to $500 million and extended the facility’s maturity to 2031.

Boot Barn Raises Fiscal 2027 OutlookBacked by its better-than-expected first-quarter performance, Boot Barn raised its fiscal 2027 outlook. Management now expects earnings in the range of $8.80-$9.23 per share, up from the previous guidance of $8.21-$8.64, including an estimated 46-cent benefit from tariff refunds.

Total sales are projected to be between $2.580 billion and $2.625 billion, while consolidated same-store sales are expected to increase 2-4% for the year, with retail store same-store sales growth of 1-3% and e-commerce same-store sales growth of 11-13%. The company had earlier total sales in the band of $2.578-$2.623 billion.

The merchandise margin rate is now expected to reach approximately 52.2% of sales, up 130 basis points year over year. The expansion includes 70 basis points from tariff refunds, 50 basis points from product-margin improvement and 10 basis points from lower freight costs. BOOT forecasts gross profit between $993 million and $1,016 million, or approximately 38.5% to 38.7% of sales.

For the second quarter, Boot Barn expects net sales of $572-$582 million, suggesting year-over-year growth of 13-15%. Consolidated same-store sales are projected to range from flat to up 2%, with retail store same-store sales between down 1% and up 1% and e-commerce same-store sales growth of 10% to 12%. Management expects earnings in the range of $1.55-$1.65 per share, including an estimated 6-cent benefit from tariff refunds.

Boot Barn expects second-quarter merchandise margin between $297 million and $302 million, or approximately 51.8% of sales, up 140 basis points year over year. The outlook includes an estimated $2.4 million benefit from tariff refunds. Gross profit is projected in the range of $208-$213 million, implying about 36.3%-36.6% of sales.

Management noted that consolidated same-store sales were approximately flat during the first four weeks of the second quarter. The moderation reflected fewer Western lifestyle stadium events and concerts, along with temporary traffic disruptions tied to World Cup broadcasts. Despite the softer July performance, management said the consumer remained healthy, reaffirmed confidence in its outlook for the balance of the year and maintained that Boot Barn was well positioned to deliver another year of profitable growth.

Shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have fallen 12% over the past three months against the industry’s rise of 4.5%.

Stocks Looking Red HotGenesco Inc. (GCO - Free Report) , a retailer and wholesaler of footwear, apparel, and accessories, flaunts a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Genesco’s current fiscal-year earnings indicates growth of 55.2% from the year-ago actuals. GCO delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 3.8%.

Designer Brands Inc. (DBI - Free Report) , one of the world's largest designers, producers, and retailers of footwear and accessories, currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Canada Goose’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings calls for growth of 0.5% and 137.5%, respectively, from the year-ago actuals. DBI delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 112.8%.

Deckers Outdoor Corporation (DECK - Free Report) , a global leader in designing, marketing, and distributing innovative footwear, apparel and accessories, currently carries a Zacks Rank #2.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Deckers’ current fiscal-year sales and earnings calls for growth of 7.9% and 6.7%, respectively, from the year-ago actuals. DECK delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 15.2%.