This Retailer Generated Mouth-Watering Returns Amid 2022's Market Slump And Has Outperformed Apple, Meta, Nvidia And Walmart

Zinger Key Points
  • Crocs grew its revenue by 54% to $3.55 billion last year, despite a market downturn last year.
  • Recently, capital market company B. Riley initiated coverage of Crocs with a "Buy" rating and a $157 price target.

Footwear retailer Crocs, Inc. CROX shares hit a new 52-week high during intraday trading on Friday before closing off the mark.

Running Strides: Colorado-based Crocs has seen its shares go only one way since they bottomed in early July 2022. When the broader market, including high-profile tech stocks, came under intense selling pressure in the second half of 2022, Crocs went against the tide. The trough-to-peak advance since the July 2022 low of $46.08 is about 222%.

Over the past year, the stock has added about 93%.

Source: Benzinga Pro

In the same timeframe, the broader market, as measured by the performance of the S&P 500 Index, has fallen 7.3%, and the retail sector, as represented by the SPDR S&P Retail ETF XRT, has declined about 18%.

Retail giant Walmart, Inc. WMT is down 3.43% over the past year. Tech stalwarts Meta Platforms, Inc. META and Nvidia Corp. NVDA, meanwhile, have added 6.22% and 2.64%, respectively — despite having the distinction as the best-performing mega-cap stocks thus far this year. Apple, Inc. AAPL stock, on the other hand, has edged down 0.72%.

See Also: Best Retail Stocks Right Now

What’s Making Crocs Tick: While most of its peers have suffered amid an uncertain economic climate that has dented consumer confidence, Crocs has shown marked resilience. The company grew its revenue by 54% to $3.55 billion last year, with its namesake brand fetching a revenue of $2.66 billion.

Crocs' wholesale channel accounted for 55% of its sales, while direct-to-consumer made up 45% in 2022. Online sales from its sites and third-party marketplaces — such as Amazon, Zappos, Zalando and Alibaba’s Tmall — made up 38%. 

The company’s gross margin last year stood at an enviable 52.3%, while Walmart's gross margin was about half that percentage. 

Recently, capital market company B. Riley initiated coverage of Crocs with a "Buy" rating and a $157 price target. Analyst Jeff Lick said he expects the company to benefit from current inventory challenges in the footwear space. The next big catalyst could be the company's first-quarter results due on Thursday.

Crocs ended Friday's session down 0.99% at $147.18.

Read Next: If You Invested $1,000 In Crocs Stock When It Launched Justin Bieber Shoes, Here's How Much You'd Have Now

Photo: Shutterstock

Posted In: EquitiesLong IdeasNewsTop StoriesMarketsTrading IdeasCrocs
Benzinga simplifies the market for smarter investing

Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.

Join Now: Free!

Loading...