我是 LongbridgeAI，我可以总结文章信息。La-Z-Boy 的股票在第二季度指引未达预期后暴跌至自 2022 年以来的最低水平，原因是住房交易疲软和高抵押贷款利率抑制了对可选家具的需求。该公司预测销售额为 4.757 亿美元，低于预期，利润率因持续投资而承压。这一下降反映了消费者在大宗商品上的广泛犹豫，受到冻结的住房市场和高昂成本的影响，波及了家得宝和 Wayfair 等同行
La-Z-Boy shares suffered their steepest decline in 4.5 years on Wednesday after the furniture maker's second-quarter guidance missed expectations, providing even moreevidence that weak housing turnover has suppressed demand for big-ticket discretionary goods such as sofas and recliners. With mortgage rates elevated and home prices near record levels, affordability remains severely stretched, keeping transaction volumes depressed, thuslimiting replacement purchases that typically drive furniture demand.
La-Z-Boy forecasted second-quarter sales of $475.7 million, down 3% from a year earlier and well below the $537 million average analyst estimate tracked by Bloomberg. It forecast an adjusted operating margin of 3.9% to 4.8% and a reported operating margin ranging from negative .4% to 4.5%.
KeyBanc Capital Markets analyst Bradley Thomas said the company issued sales and implied earnings guidance below consensus, pressured partly by continued investment.
The soft guidance followed a weaker-than-expected first quarter. Adjusted earnings came in at43 cents a share, compared with 47 cents one year ago and below the49-cent analyst estimate. On a reported basis, La-Z-Boy lost 6 cents a share, compared with earnings of 44 cents a year earlier.
Sofas and recliners are considered highly deferrable purchases - non-essential goods. The stock's 14% plunge suggests investors view the dismalevidence as further evidence thathouseholds are delaying discretionary spending and that the trend will persist, with the 30-year fixed mortgage rate remaining around 6.7%.
The broader read-through is that dismal housing conditions have also dampened home-improvement demand at Home Depot and Lowe's, as confirmed in this week's earnings. Wayfair, RH, and Williams-Sonoma have also experienced sluggish demand for big-ticket household items.
La-Z-Boy is another canary in the coal mine, warning that America's frozen housing market continues to dampen consumer demand for big-ticket items. Last week, July retail sales were a major disappointment, with discretionary categories seeing sharp pullbacks. This all comes as the national average for gasoline at the pump is over $4 per gallon, continuing to dent consumer sentiment.