Levi Strauss shares fall on sluggish holiday quarter forecast

(Reuters) – Levi Strauss (NYSE:LEVI)’ shares slumped about 11% in premarket trading on Thursday after it forecast tepid holiday quarter revenue as the denim maker grapples with weak demand from retailers with consumers paring back spending.

The company, whose stock has risen about 27% so far this year and was trading at $18.77 premarket, also said on Wednesday it was considering a sale of its underperforming khaki and chinos brand Dockers.

Apparel makers from VF Corp (NYSE:VFC) to Nike (NYSE:NKE) have been rethinking their product assortments and relationship with wholesalers or retailers who stock the brands as they focus on popular styles to tackle choppy demand amid sticky inflation.

Disappointing segments such as wholesale and Dockers weigh on the company’s full year earnings and its credibility for improving revenue growth, said Stifel analyst Jim Duffy in a note.

Dockers’ sales dropped 15% for the third quarter. Levi, which is in the midst of a turnaround strategy, is now looking to focus on its core denim clothing.

“While challenges remain near-term, we remain encouraged by continued strength in Levi’s business as well as the announcement that the company is evaluating strategic alternatives for the Dockers business,” Telsey Advisory Group analyst Dana Telsey said.

Levi’s margins have benefited from cost-cutting measures and exiting businesses like its footwear and Denizen brand. This helped its third-quarter adjusted profit beat Wall Street expectations by 2 cents.

The company’s forward price-to-earnings ratio for the next 12 months, a common benchmark for valuing stocks, was 14.96, compared with 16.02 for Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) and 27.26 for Nike.

“We acknowledge room (for Levi) for greater consistency to return to the long-term revenue growth target, which remains the key pushback from investors,” TD Cowen analyst Oliver Chen said.