Citi analysts said the firm expects lululemon athletica (NASDAQ:LULU) to report a second-quarter earnings beat and raise full-year guidance when it reports after the close on August 31.
The analysts, who have a Buy rating and $450 price target on the stock, told investors in a note that their view is based on the company's higher sales, driven by strong China growth and stronger GM.
"While 2Q earnings have been characterized by haves and have-nots across retail, those similar to LULU with significant exposure to higher income consumers (Anthro, FP, A&F) performed well, and in all cases accelerated vs 1Q," wrote the analysts.
"We expect mgmt to raise F23 guidance by the 2Q beat and guide 3Q in line with cons. We expect 2Q to support our view that LULU is in the early stages of significant int’l growth, particularly in China, supporting consistent DD top- and bottom-line growth annually," they added.
Despite the positives, Citi acknowledges that LULU is a crowded long amongst hedge funds, and expectations are high, which "may limit upside in the very near term."