BJ's Wholesale Q2 Earnings Beat, Membership Hits 8M, Outlook Raised

Core Insights - BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. reported mixed results for Q2 of fiscal 2025, with revenues below estimates but earnings exceeding expectations, driven by strong membership growth and traffic gains [1][11] - Management raised its fiscal 2025 earnings guidance, reflecting confidence in continued performance [12] Financial Performance - Adjusted earnings per share were $1.14, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.10 and increasing from $1.09 in the previous year [2][11] - Total revenues reached $5,380.2 million, a 3.4% increase year over year, but fell short of the consensus estimate of $5,463 million [3] - Net sales increased by 3.2% to $5,256.9 million, while membership fee income rose by 9% to $123.3 million, with membership reaching 8 million and a renewal rate of 90% [3][11] Sales and Traffic - Comparable club sales decreased by 0.3% year over year, primarily due to lower fuel retail prices; however, excluding gasoline sales, comparable club sales increased by 2.3% [4] - Digitally enabled comparable sales surged by 34%, building on a two-year growth stack of 56% [4] Margins and Expenses - Gross profit increased to $1,006.2 million from $956.6 million year over year, with merchandise gross margin rate expanding by 10 basis points [5] - Operating income rose by 6.3% to $216.5 million, with the operating margin expanding by 10 basis points to 4% [6] - Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses increased by 4.8% to $786.4 million, reflecting higher labor and occupancy costs, while SG&A as a percentage of total revenues decreased by 20 basis points to 14.6% [7] Cash Flow and Share Repurchase - Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the quarter were $47.3 million, with long-term debt at $399 million and stockholders' equity at $2,099.1 million [8] - Net cash provided by operating activities was $249.9 million, and adjusted free cash flow totaled $87.3 million; the company repurchased 375,000 shares worth $41.2 million during the quarter [9] Future Guidance - Management expects fiscal 2025 comparable club sales, excluding gasoline, to increase between 2% and 3.5% year over year [12] - Adjusted earnings forecast for fiscal 2025 was raised to $4.20 to $4.35 per share, compared to the previous range of $4.10 to $4.30 [12]