Stitch Fix stocks fall on lower financial guidance

Shares of Stitch Fix Inc. tumbled on Tuesday’s after-hours trading after the company lowered its financial guidance for the full year.

The online styling service sank 18.89% or 2.08 points to $8.93 per share. It reversed its gain of 4.36% or 0.46 points to $11.01 per share in the regular hours market.

Accordingly, this downturn slashed $226.30 million from its market capitalization.

Stitch Fix explained that the firm currently struggles to grow its subscriber base. In the stated case, the company is now much more cautious about its prospects for future growth.

For the full fiscal 2022, which ends July 30, the business expects revenue to be flat to slightly down year-over-year.

Meanwhile, analysts anticipate the company’s revenue to be up 8.10% for the fiscal year.

Correspondingly, Stitch Fix assumes that the number of active clients is flat through the end of the fiscal year.

Moreover, it mentioned that it is actively evaluating its marketing spend to manage improvements to onboarding and conversion better.

As a result, the firm has withdrawn the prior provided outlook for full-year adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, and amortization.

For its fiscal third quarter, Stitch Fix forecasts revenue between $485.00 million to $500.00 million. This estimate represents a 7.00% to 10.00% year-over-year decline.

It also came in lower than the analysts’ consensus of $560.50 million.

This negative outlook rattled the investors, overshadowing its positive fiscal second-quarter result.

The firm’s Q2 revenue was $516.70 million, outpacing the market estimate of $514.80 million. It also edged up from the $504.10 million result a year earlier.

Consequently, it reported a net loss of $30.90 million, or $0.28 per share, in line with the analysts’ expectations.

Stitch Fix’s freestyle

The negative outlook remains despite a recently introduced option for shoppers known as Freestyle. It allows customers to buy single items from its website without a subscription.

Subsequently, the direct-buy option mainly intends to boost company profitability in the long run.

However, Stitch Fix CEO Elizabeth Spaulding explained that the retailer inadvertently created friction during the Freestyle rollout.

In line with this, the firm now changes the browsing and checkout process to be more accessible for users.

Regardless, Spaulding said that the company is still glad about investing in adding a direct-buy option.

She noted that the function makes Stitch Fix a more holistic platform for clients looking for new clothes.

Before the extended trading, the firm’s stock price slumped 43.25% or 8.39 points year-to-date. It also plunged 77.64% or 38.22 points from last year’s performance.

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