The retailer posted a decline in net holiday sales
Victoria secret parent L Brands Inc (NYSE:LB) is up this morning, despite the company posting net holiday sales of $3.9 billion, which came in below estimates. LB also posted a decrease in quarterly sales, and lowered its fourth-quarter outlook to $1.85 from $2 per share. The equity is up 2.7% at $18.60, at last check.
Since hitting its nine-year low just south of the $16 region in mid-November, the retailer has been trading in a channel of higher lows, contained by the $17 and $19 levels, with a breakout attempt thwarted by the descending 100-day moving average. While this trendline has since transitioned into a level of support for the security, LB is now contending with its 120-day moving average. Year-over-year the stock is down roughly 34%.
Analysts, unsurprisingly, have been been cautious on the stock, with 16 of the 19 in coverage calling it a "hold" or worse. The consensus 12-month target price of $20.04, on the other hand, represents a level LB hasn't touched since late-August.
Options players, on the other hand, have been singing a different tune. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), LB sports a 10-day call/put volume ratio of 3.39, which sits in the 79th percentile of its annual range. This suggests a healthier-than-usual appetite for bullish bets of late.