June 5, 2026

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Caleres Inc. (NYSE: CAL) reported first-quarter results above expectations, supported by strong Brand Portfolio growth, margin expansion, and higher revenue, but shares slipped as investors focused on weaker Famous Footwear sales and cautious near-term guidance.
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Caleres is a footwear company that operates Famous Footwear and owns a portfolio of footwear brands across casual, fashion, athletic, and lifestyle categories.
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The company reported adjusted EPS of $0.38, above estimates of $0.37, representing a 2.7% earnings surprise. Revenue came in at $666.60 million, slightly below estimates of $667.00 million, with revenue growth of 8.5%.

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Results Were Mixed Across Segments

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Caleres reported revenue of $666.6 million, up 8.5% from $614.2 million in the prior-year quarter. The Brand Portfolio segment led growth, with sales up 20.6%, or 5.8% organically excluding Stuart Weitzman.
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Famous Footwear remained the weaker part of the business. Sales declined 2.5%, while comparable sales fell 2.3%.
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Gross margin expanded 200 basis points to 47.3%, helped by a 520 basis point improvement in Brand Portfolio gross margin to 49.0%. Famous Footwear gross margin fell 150 basis points to 43.8%.
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Inventory ended the quarter at $609.1 million, up $35 million year-over-year. Excluding Stuart Weitzman, inventory declined $22.7 million.

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Guidance

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For the second quarter, Caleres expects net sales to increase mid-to-high single digits, with GAAP EPS of $0.32 to $0.38.
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For full-year 2026, the company expects net sales to rise low-to-mid single digits. It now expects GAAP EPS of $1.44 to $1.69 and adjusted EPS of $1.40 to $1.65, compared with prior adjusted EPS guidance of $1.35 to $1.65.

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The Bigger Picture

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Caleres delivered a better-than-expected earnings result, but the quarter was not clean.
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The Brand Portfolio segment showed strong momentum and margin improvement, but Famous Footwear remained under pressure. The stock reaction suggests investors wanted stronger evidence that the core retail business is stabilizing, especially with second-quarter EPS guidance looking cautious.
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