Lululemon warns of hit to holiday results from Omicron

The logo for Lululemon Athletica is seen at a store in Manhattan, New York, U.S., December 7, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly

Jan 10 (Reuters) – Lululemon Athletica Inc (LULU.O) said on Monday its holiday quarter results will be hit from the Omicron variant of the coronavirus that has forced the yoga wear maker to cut down on staffing and store hours, sending its shares down 7% in premarket trade.

Omicron has further hurt the retail sector, which has already been grappling with shipping delays and product shortages due to an overburdened supply chain.

“We started the holiday season in a strong position but have since experienced several consequences of the Omicron variant, including increased capacity constraints, more limited staff availability, and reduced operating hours in certain locations,” Lululemon Chief Executive Calvin McDonald said.

The Vancouver, Canada-based company said it now expects fourth-quarter net revenue to be toward the low end of its previous forecast of $2.13 billion to $2.17 billion.

It also expects fourth-quarter adjusted profit per share to be toward the low end of its earlier outlook of $3.25 to $3.32.

Reporting by Uday Sampath and Deborah Sophia in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli and Vinay Dwivedi

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