Why Big Lots (BIG) Shares Are Falling Today

Big Lots Inc BIG reported a third-quarter FY22 sales decline of 9.8% year-on-year to $1.20 billion, missing the consensus of $1.21 billion. Comparable sales for the quarter decreased 11.7% Y/Y.
Gross margin for the quarter decreased 490 basis points Y/Y to 34%. The operating loss for the quarter was $(130.8) million versus a loss of $(4.1) million a year ago.
CEO Bruce Thorn stated, "The third quarter marks another quarter in which we met the challenges of a tough environment head on and did what we said we would do. Our sales and gross margin were in line with guidance and, importantly, year-over-year inventories continued to come down materially."
The company held $62.1 million in cash and equivalents as of October 29, 2022.
Inventory at the end of the quarter was $1.3 billion, a 5.3% increase Y/Y.
Adjusted EPS loss of $(2.99) missed the analyst consensus of $(2.94).
The company's Board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.30 per share, payable on December 28, 2022, to shareholders of record on December 14, 2022.
Outlook: Big Lots sees Q4 comparable sales to be down in the low double-digit range.
The company expects Q4 gross margin rate to improve sequentially versus Q3 but remain in the mid-30s range.
The company is not providing EPS guidance at this point, given an atypically wide range of outcomes.
Price Action: BIG shares are trading lower by 11.33% at $17.29 on the last check Thursday.
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Big Lots Shares Plunge As Q3 Performance Miss Expectations