Lululemon Athletica Inc. ( LULU ) shares are trading higher on Friday after the company reported better-than-expected 2024 third-quarter earnings after the bell on Thursday.

The Details: Lululemon stock rose about 8% after the market closed on Thursday following the release of its earnings report. The earnings report included earnings per share of $2.87, beating analyst estimates of $2.71.

The company reported sales of $2.40 billion, beating analyst estimates of $2.36 billion and representing a 9% year-over-year growth. Lululemon reported a 2% increase in American net revenue and a 33% rise in International net revenue.

Additionally, comparable sales grew by 4% overall. Comparable sales in the Americas declined by 2%, while International comparable sales surged by 25%.

Lululemon included other key pieces of financial data in its report, including income from operations of $490.7 million. The athletic clothing brand also reported an operating margin of 20.5%.

Throughout the third quarter, the company repurchased 1.6 million shares of its common stock for $408.5 million. Furthermore, it approved a $1.0 billion increase to its share repurchase program, bringing the total authorized repurchases to approximately $1.8 billion.

Lululemon issued guidance for the 2024 fourth quarter. It sees revenue from $3.475 billion to $3.510 billion versus analyst estimates of $3.496 billion.

The company issued guidance for the 2024 fiscal year as well. It sees net revenue from $10.45 billion to $10.48 billion.

Analyst Changes: Following the earnings report, several analysts issued price target adjustments.

Telsey Advisory Group analyst Dana Telsey maintained an Outperform rating on Lululemon and raised the price target from $360 to $430.

Keybanc analyst Ashley Owens maintained an Overweight rating on Lululemon and raised the price target from $350 to $400.

Baird analyst Mark Altschwager maintained an Outperform rating on Lululemon and raised the price target from $380 to $440.

Piper Sandler analyst Anna Andreeva maintained a Neutral rating on Lululemon and raised the price target from $260 to $340.

Wells Fargo analyst Ike Boruchow maintained an Equal-Weight rating on Lululemon and raised the price target from $285 to $350.

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LULU Price Action: At the time of writing, Lululemon stock is moving 16.7% higher at $402.40, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

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