Shoe Carnival (NASDAQ:SCVL) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Meets Estimates

Shoe Carnival (NASDAQ:SCVL) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33, FiscalAI reports. Shoe Carnival had a net margin of 5.06% and a return on equity of 8.75%. The company had revenue of $254.07 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $256.74 million. Shoe Carnival’s revenue was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.54 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Shoe Carnival’s conference call:

• The board appointed Cliff Sifford as Interim President & CEO after Mark Worden’s departure, a permanent search is underway, and CEO transition costs will be reported separately and are excluded from the fiscal 2026 guidance.
• Fiscal 2026 guidance calls for EPS of $1.40–$1.60 (vs. $1.90 in FY2025) and ~260 bps gross margin compression to ~34%, driven mainly by the timing of tariff-related cost increases and near-term promotional activity.
• The large-scale rebanner rollout is being slowed after variability in converted store performance — 101 rebanners completed in FY25, with ~21 targeted conversions planned before back-to-school 2026 and reduced rebanner P&L spend of $10M–$15M and capex of $5M–$7M for FY26.
• Inventory was elevated to $439.6M (+14%) from opportunistic pre-tariff buys and management plans to reduce inventory by $50M–$65M in FY26 via targeted promotions, which will pressure margins early in the year but is expected to improve cash flow and margin trends in H2 and FY27.
• The company remains financially strong — debt-free for 21 years with $130.7M in cash & securities, a raised quarterly dividend to $0.17, $100M revolver availability, and $50M remaining on the share repurchase authorization.

Shoe Carnival Stock Performance

Shares of SCVL traded down $0.75 on Thursday, hitting $17.12. 91,221 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 368,861. Shoe Carnival has a one year low of $15.21 and a one year high of $26.57. The company has a market capitalization of $468.64 million, a PE ratio of 8.22 and a beta of 1.34. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.21.

Shoe Carnival Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 6th will be paid a $0.17 dividend. This is a boost from Shoe Carnival’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 6th. Shoe Carnival’s payout ratio is currently 28.57%.

Shoe Carnival announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Friday, December 12th that permits the company to buyback $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 9.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in Shoe Carnival in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Shoe Carnival in the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Shoe Carnival in the fourth quarter worth about $86,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in shares of Shoe Carnival by 66.9% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 7,005 shares of the company’s stock worth $146,000 after buying an additional 2,809 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Shoe Carnival in the second quarter worth about $146,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.05% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Williams Trading set a $22.00 target price on shares of Shoe Carnival in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Shoe Carnival in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.00.

Shoe Carnival Company Profile

Shoe Carnival, Inc (NASDAQ: SCVL) is a U.S.-based specialty retailer offering a broad assortment of footwear, apparel and accessories for the entire family. Through its network of brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce platform, the company provides casual, athletic and dress shoes for men, women and children, as well as complementary apparel, handbags, socks and other accessories designed to deliver value and variety. Its distinctive in-store carnival host service model aims to create an engaging shopping experience and foster customer loyalty.

Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Evansville, Indiana, Shoe Carnival has expanded over four decades to operate more than 350 retail locations across over 30 states.