Dick’s Reports Worst Post-Pandemic Earnings, Blames Shoplifting

Dick’s Sporting Goods missed Wall Street’s earnings expectations for the first time in three years, dropping its stock nearly 25% to around $111 as of Tuesday afternoon.

The company reported $2.82 per share in adjusted profit for its second fiscal quarter, compared with expectations of $3.81 per share. Sales rose 3.6% to $3.224 billion — slightly below the $3.238 billion expected.

Shoplifting and employee theft were blamed in part for the poor results.

“Organized retail crime and theft in general is an increasingly serious issue impacting many retailers,” Dick’s CEO Lauren Hobart said on the company’s earnings call. Dick’s chief financial officer Navdeep Gupta added that organized retail crime was “significantly higher” than the company anticipated.

Looking toward end-of-year, Dick’s reduced its expectations for adjusted profits to between $11.50 and $12.30 per share.

Despite the unfavorable financial results, Dick’s stock is still up around 600% from the end of March 2022, as the company has largely been able to capitalize on increased interest in athletic gear, at-home workout equipment, and other sporting activities like golf, tennis, and pickleball. 

Corporate Layoffs

Dick’s reportedly let go of 250 employees this week, according to Bloomberg. As of January, it had employed nearly 53,000 full- and part-time workers.