Caleres Reports Fourth Quarter & Fiscal 2025 Results

ST. LOUIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mar 19, 2026--

Caleres (NYSE: CAL), a market-leading portfolio of consumer-driven footwear brands, today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and full year 2025, as well as guidance for first quarter and full year 2026.

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“Caleres’ fourth quarter exceeded our earnings guidance with sales modestly above expectations and gross margin better than anticipated in both segments,” said Jay Schmidt, president and chief executive officer. “Performance was driven by continued strength in owned eCommerce and international growth, reinforcing our strategic growth vectors. Our Lead Brands once again outperformed, and we gained market share in both women’s fashion footwear and total footwear. We also completed the Stuart Weitzman integration with minimal business disruption. At Famous Footwear, FLAIR remodels continue to outperform the fleet, and our more curated and elevated assortment is resonating with consumers as Famous gained market share in shoe chains.

“As we look ahead, 2026 is shaping up as a build-back year with modest organic sales growth and meaningful earnings recovery. While we have many reasons for optimism, we are also aware that the current geopolitical backdrop presents a level of risk and uncertainty. Profit improvement in 2026 will be driven primarily by our tariff mitigation efforts taking hold and our plan to bring Stuart Weitzman to breakeven profitability. We are confident that executing our strategic plans will result in improved financial performance and drive long-term value for our shareholders.”

Fourth Quarter 2025 Results
(13 weeks ended January 31, 2026, compared to 13 weeks ended February 1, 2025)

Fiscal Year 2025 Results
(52 weeks ended January 31, 2026, compared to 52 weeks ended February 1, 2025)

First Quarter & Fiscal 2026 Outlook

For the first quarter of 2026, we expect sales to increase mid- to high-single digits versus last year. Famous Footwear sales are expected to be down low single digits to flat, with comparable sales of down 2% to up 1%. Brand Portfolio sales are anticipated to be up mid-teens, with low single-digit organic growth. Gross margin is expected to improve 120 to 140 basis points. With discrete items impacting the quarter, we expect a tax rate of 30% to 32%. We expect GAAP earnings per diluted share of $0.21 to $0.26 and adjusted earnings per diluted share of $0.25 to $0.30, as we expect to incur approximately $2 million in remaining Stuart Weitzman acquisition and integration expenses.

For fiscal 2026, we expect total sales to increase low to mid-single digits versus fiscal 2025. Famous Footwear sales are expected to be down low single digits to flat, with comparable sales of down 1% to up 1%. Brand Portfolio sales are anticipated to increase low double digits, with low to mid-single-digit organic growth. Gross margin is expected to improve 140 to 180 basis points as tariff mitigation actions take hold and mix improves. We expect interest expense of approximately $18 million, a full-year tax rate of 28% to 30%, and capital expenditures of $55 to $60 million. We expect GAAP earnings per diluted share of $1.31 to $1.61 and adjusted earnings per diluted share of $1.35 to $1.65, as we expect to incur approximately $2 million in remaining Stuart Weitzman acquisition and integration expenses.

First Quarter 2026

Fiscal 2026

Investor Conference Call

Caleres will host a conference call at 10:00 a.m. ET today, Thursday, March 19, 2026. The webcast and associated slides will be available at investor.caleres.com/events-and-presentations. A live conference call will be available at (877) 704-4453 for North America participants or (201) 389-0920 for international participants; no passcode necessary. A replay will also be available at investor.caleres.com/events-and-presentations for a limited period. Investors can access the replay through April 2, 2026 by dialing (844) 512-2921 in North America or (412) 317-6671 internationally and using the pin 13758564.

About Caleres

Caleres is a market-leading portfolio of global footwear brands that includes Famous Footwear, Sam Edelman, Stuart Weitzman, Allen Edmonds, Naturalizer, Vionic, and more. Our products are available virtually everywhere - in the nearly 1,000 retail stores we operate, in hundreds of major department and specialty stores, on our branded eCommerce sites, and on many additional third-party retail platforms. Combined, these brands make Caleres a company with both a legacy and a mission. Our legacy is nearly 150 years of craftsmanship and our passion for fit, while our mission is to continue to inspire people to feel great…feet first. Visit caleres.com to learn more about us.

Definitions

All references in this press release, outside of the condensed consolidated financial statements that follow, unless otherwise noted, related to net earnings (loss) attributable to Caleres, Inc. and diluted earnings (loss) per common share attributable to Caleres, Inc. shareholders, are presented as net earnings (loss) and earnings (loss) per diluted share, respectively.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Metrics

In this press release, the company’s financial results are provided both in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and using certain non-GAAP financial measures and metrics. In particular, the company provides estimated and future gross profit, operating earnings (loss), net earnings (loss) and earnings (loss) per diluted share, adjusted to exclude certain gains, charges and recoveries and the financial results of the acquired Stuart Weitzman business, which are non-GAAP financial measures. These results are included as a complement to results provided in accordance with GAAP because management believes these non-GAAP financial measures and metrics help identify underlying trends in the company’s business and provide useful information to both management and investors by excluding certain items that may not be indicative of the company’s core operating results. This measure and metric should not be considered a substitute for or superior to GAAP results.

Safe Harbor Statement Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements and expectations regarding the company’s future performance and the performance of its brands. Such statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. These risks include (i) changes in United States and international trade policies, including tariffs and trade restrictions; (ii) changing consumer demands, which may be influenced by general economic conditions and other factors; (iii) inflationary pressures and supply chain disruptions; (iv) rapidly changing consumer preferences and purchasing patterns and fashion trends; (v) supplier concentration, customer concentration and increased consolidation in the retail industry; (vi) intense competition within the footwear industry; (vii) foreign currency fluctuations; (viii) political and economic conditions or other threats to the continued and uninterrupted flow of inventory from China and other countries, where the company relies heavily on third-party manufacturing facilities for a significant amount of its inventory; (ix) cybersecurity threats or other major disruption to the company’s information technology systems including those related to our ERP upgrade; (x) transitional challenges with acquisitions and divestitures; (xi) the ability to accurately forecast sales and manage inventory levels; (xii) a disruption in the company’s distribution centers; (xiii) the ability to recruit and retain senior management and other key associates; (xiv) the ability to secure/exit leases on favorable terms; (xv) the ability to maintain relationships with current suppliers; (xvi) changes to tax laws, policies and treaties; (xvii) our commitments and shareholder expectations related to responsible business initiatives; (xviii) compliance with applicable laws and standards with respect to labor, trade and product safety issues; and (xix) the ability to attract, retain, and maintain good relationships with licensors and protect our intellectual property rights.

The company's reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission contain detailed information relating to such factors, including, without limitation, the information under the caption Risk Factors in Item 1A of the company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended February 1, 2025, which information is incorporated by reference herein and updated by the company’s Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. The company does not undertake any obligation or plan to update these forward-looking statements, even though its situation may change.

 

Sam Edelman Saige Studded Ankle Boot

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is facing perhaps the most daunting question of the war with Iran, one that could define his time in office: Will he put U.S. troops on the ground in Iran to secure some 970 pounds of enriched uranium that Tehran could potentially use to build nuclear weapons?

Trump has offered shifting reasons for launching the war, but he has been consistent in articulating that a primary objective in joining Israel in the military action is ensuring that Iran will “never have a nuclear weapon.”

The president has been more circumspect about how far he's willing to go to follow through on his pledge to destroy Iran's weapons program once and for all, including seizing or destroying the near-bomb-grade nuclear material that Iran possesses.

Much of it is believed to be buried under the rubble of a mountain facility pummeled in U.S. bombings Trump ordered last June that he had claimed “obliterated” Tehran's nuclear program.

It's a risky, complicated project that many nuclear experts say cannot be done without a sizable deployment of U.S. troops into Iran, a dangerous and politically fraught operation for the Republican president, who has vowed not to entangle the U.S. in the sort of extended and bloody Middle East conflicts that still loom large on America's psyche.

At the same time, lawmakers and experts remain concerned that if Iran hard-liners emerge from the fighting, they'll be more motivated than ever to build nuclear weapons as they look to deter the U.S. and Israel from future military action, a dynamic that makes taking control of Iran's enriched uranium even more critical. That stockpile could allow Iran to build as many as 10 nuclear bombs, should it decide to weaponize its program.

Some lawmakers, like Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., say they remain deeply fearful that the president has put the nation on a path that will require putting troops inside Iran for what he called Trump’s confused and chaotic objectives.

“Some of the objectives that he continues to espouse simply cannot be achieved without a physical presence there -- securing the uranium cannot be done without a physical presence," said Blumenthal, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Meanwhile, Republican allies of Trump stress that there are plans in place to deal with the enriched uranium. Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman James Risch, R-Idaho, on Wednesday cited “a number of plans that have been put on the table.” He declined to elaborate.

Others acknowledged the complications of deploying troops into Iran.

“No one has given me a briefing on how you would do it without boots on the ground,” said Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. “It doesn’t mean you can’t. But no one’s ever briefed me about it.”

Scott added it's not tenable to allow the stockpile to remain: “I think it would be helpful to get rid of it.”

Nearly three weeks into a conflict that's left hundreds of people dead, tested longtime alliances and brought pain to the global economy, Trump and his top advisers have been rigidly obtuse about their deliberations over Iran's uranium stockpile.

“I’m not going to talk about that,” Trump said last week when asked about the enriched uranium. “But we have hit them harder than virtually any country in history has been hit, and we’re not finished yet.”

Later that day, during an appearance in Kentucky, Trump appeared to claim the strikes had already neutralized the threat. “They don’t have nuclear potential," he said.

Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters earlier this week that the administration sees no point in telegraphing “what we’re willing to do or how far we’re willing to go" while asserting "we have options, for sure.”

Richard Goldberg, who served as director for countering Iranian weapons of mass destruction for the National Security Council during Trump's first term, said that seizing or destroying the enriched uranium is certainly doable, if the president decides to go that route.

The U.S. and Israeli forces have been making strides toward creating the conditions — namely, establishing total air superiority — that would allow for special operations forces operators, who are trained in blowing up centrifuges and dealing with nuclear material, to conduct such an operation if the president decides to go that route.

To be certain, a troops-on-the-ground effort is expected to be far more complicated than other recent high-profile, lightning-strike insertion operations, such as the January capture of Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro or the May 2011 killing of Osama bin Laden, Goldberg said. And the likely need to remove rubble to get to the canisters of enriched uranium adds another layer of complexity, because it would require heavy construction equipment.

"But if you actually own the airspace and you can have close air support and drones and everything else up in the sky for pretty wide perimeter, presumably you could do a lot,” said Goldberg, who is now a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a hawkish Washington think tank.

International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi told reporters in Washington this week that the assumption is much of the enriched uranium remains in the trio of Iranian nuclear sites bombarded last year by the U.S.

“The impression we have … is that it hasn’t been moved,” said Grossi, adding that a bulk of the material is beneath the rubble at Iran’s Isfahan facility while lesser amounts are at the Natanz and Fordow facilities that were destroyed in last year’s American strikes.

Testifying before a Senate committee on Wednesday, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard in her prepared remarks said that the U.S. attacks on Iran had “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear enrichment program and buried underground facilities.

Gabbard said the U.S. has been monitoring whether Iran’s leaders will try to restart its nuclear program but said that they have not tried to rebuild their nuclear enrichment capability. She added that the clerical authority overseeing Iranian government has been degraded in Israel's strikes on its leadership but remains intact.

Brandan Buck, a senior foreign policy fellow at the Cato Institute, said that an effort to extract or dilute the enriched material would likely take more than 1,000 troops at each Iranian site and would take time to complete.

On the other hand, not acting to secure the enriched uranium also comes with risk. Should Iran's hard-liners remain in power, and with enriched material, they will now have greater motivation to build a nuclear weapon.

“Trump has put himself between a rock and a hard place,” Buck said. “Throughout this, he has had maximalist aims, but he’s wanted to maintain minimal effort in order to keep the costs low.”

Associated Press writers Stephen Groves, Matthew Lee and Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.

President Donald Trump boards Air Force One, Wednesday, March 18, 2026, at Dover Air Force Base, Del., after attending the casualty return for the six crew members of an Air Force refueling aircraft who died when their plane crashed in western Iraq while supporting operations against Iran. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

President Donald Trump speaks after signing an executive order regarding a task force on fraud in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, March 16, 2026, in Washington, with a model of a B-2 stealth bomber in front of him. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

President Donald Trump arrives on Air Force One, Wednesday, March 18, 2026, at Dover Air Force Base, Del., to attend the casualty return for the six crew members of an Air Force refueling aircraft who died when their plane crashed in western Iraq while supporting operations against Iran. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)