Academy Sports & Outdoors Inc. (ASO): Global Consumer and Retail Conference 2026 — Key Takeaways

Goldman Sachs hosted Steve Lawrence, CEO, and Carl Ford, EVP & CFO, of Academy Sports & Outdoors at the 33rd Annual Global Consumer and Retail Conference. Academy is seeing a lower income consumer that remains under pressure, while traffic is accelerating from higher income consumers. 2Q comps slowed to -0.4% SSS vs. +2.9% in 1Q as the company no longer had the benefit of tax refunds; traffic decelerated to -HSD for the lower income cohort (<$50k). Management plans to open 125 stores over the next 5 years, with 20% in new markets, and to refresh 30-40 legacy stores annually. Footwear, 20% of the business, was -1% in 2Q though ASO still gained share. The promotional backdrop progressed from 1Q into 2Q and holiday is expected to be more promotional y/y. New brand launches/expansions include Jordan (200 shops), HOKA (15 stores and online), Burlebo, ChicknLegs and Ariat. Digital business rose 12.8% in 2Q. Gross margin is expected flat in 2H y/y, helped by shrink improvement, lower IEEPA ta