Contemporary clothing brand Guess (NYSE:GES) reported Q4 CY2023 results beating Wall Street analysts' expectations , with revenue up 9% year on year to $891.1 million. It made a non-GAAP profit of $2.01 per share, improving from its profit of $1.74 per share in the same quarter last year.

Is now the time to buy Guess? Find out by accessing our full research report, it's free.

Guess (GES) Q4 CY2023 Highlights:

• Revenue: $891.1 million vs analyst estimates of $854.6 million (4.3% beat)

• EPS (non-GAAP): $2.01 vs analyst estimates of $1.57 (27.9% beat)

• EPS (non-GAAP) Guidance for Q1 CY2024 is -$0.39 at the midpoint, below analyst estimates of -$0.02

• Gross Margin (GAAP): 45.4%, up from 44.2% in the same quarter last year

• Free Cash Flow of $264.9 million is up from -$24.07 million in the previous quarter

• Market Capitalization: $1.35 billion

Flexing the iconic upside-down triangle logo with a question mark, Guess (NYSE:GES) is a global fashion brand known for its trendy clothing, accessories, and denim wear.

Apparel, Accessories and Luxury Goods

Within apparel and accessories, not only do styles change more frequently today than decades past as fads travel through social media and the internet but consumers are also shifting the way they buy their goods, favoring omnichannel and e-commerce experiences. Some apparel, accessories, and luxury goods companies have made concerted efforts to adapt while those who are slower to move may fall behind.

Sales Growth

A company’s long-term performance can give signals about its business quality. Any business can put up a good quarter or two, but many enduring ones muster years of growth. Guess's annualized revenue growth rate of 1.2% over the last five years was weak for a consumer discretionary business.

Within consumer discretionary, product cycles are short and revenue can be hit-driven due to rapidly changing trends. That's why we also follow short-term performance. Guess's annualized revenue growth of 3.5% over the last two years is above its five-year trend, suggesting some bright spots.

This quarter, Guess reported solid year-on-year revenue growth of 9%, and its $891.1 million of revenue outperformed Wall Street's estimates by 4.3%. Looking ahead, Wall Street expects sales to grow 1.7% over the next 12 months, a deceleration from this quarter.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, it should be obvious by now that generative AI is going to have a huge impact on how large corporations do business. While Nvidia and AMD are trading close to all-time highs, we prefer a lesser-known (but still profitable) semiconductor stock benefitting from the rise of AI. Click here to access our free report on our favorite semiconductor growth story.