Companies

Caleres posts second-quarter sales growth as Brand Portfolio gains momentum

Sep 10, 2026 United States

The US-based company reported higher sales and earnings in the second quarter of 2026, driven by growth in its brand portfolio. Famous Footwear continued to have a negative impact on performance

In second quarter of the 2026 financial year, which ended on the 1^st of August, the company’s net sales totalled 653.0 million US dollars. This represents a 5.6% increase compared to the same period last year, but a 0.8% decline when excluding Stuart Weitzman.

On a comparable basis to the second quarter of 2025, net sales from the brand portfolio rose by 23.6%, or by 8.2% when excluding Stuart Weitzman. In contrast, Famous Footwear’s net sales decreased by 6.3% year-on-year, with comparable sales falling by 5.9%. Overall, direct-to-consumer sales accounted for around 71% of total net sales.

Jay Schmidt, President and Chief Executive Officer of Caleres noted that in the Brand Portfolio segment, “we experienced broad-based gains across brands, channels, and geographies and we gained market share in Women’s Fashion Footwear, according to Circana”. “At Famous Footwear, results were below our expectations, as a later Back-to-School season and softness in lifestyle athletic pressured sales and margins”.

In the second quarter of the year, the company’s GAAP gross margin rose by 1,140 basis points year-on-year to 54.8%, boosted by 55.6 million US dollars in tariff refunds. Excluding these refunds, the adjusted gross margin rose by 340 basis points year-on-year to 46.8%.

Caleres reported net earnings of 58.6 million US dollars in the second quarter of 1.71 US dollars per diluted share, compared to 6.7 million US dollars, or 0.20 US dollars per diluted share, in the same period a year earlier. Excluding tariff refunds, adjusted net earnings climbed to 16.1 million US dollars, or 0.47 US dollars per share, compared to 11.7 million US dollars, or 0.35 US dollars per share.

“Despite the shift in Back-to-School, Caleres delivered strong profit improvement and earnings ahead of our guidance. Fashion footwear is clearly seeing breakout momentum – and Caleres’ brands are resonating with consumers. Within Famous Footwear, we are pivoting to quickly align our assortment with changing consumer demand, emphasizing fashion, which continues to meaningfully outperform lifestyle athletic products quarter to date”, said Jay Schmidt.

Full-Year Outlook

For full-year of 2026, Caleres still expects consolidated net sales to grow in the low to mid-single digits. Meanwhile, full-year GAAP earnings per share are now expected to be between 2.80 and 2.95 US dollars (up from previous guidance of 1.44 to 1.69 US dollars), while adjusted earnings per share are expected to be between 1.50 and 1.65 US dollars (up from previous guidance of 1.40 to 1.65 US dollars).

Image Credits: next.com.au

United States Caleres Companies Footwear Quarter Results Results