L Brands Inc.
LB,
-3.19%
said late Tuesday it expects to report second-quarter per-share earnings between $1.20 and $1.30, compared with a previous guidance of EPS between 80 cents and $1.00. That increase is mostly thanks to higher-than-forecasted merchandise margin rates and as a "strong customer response to merchandise assortments and disciplined inventory management enabled a reduction in promotional activity," the company said. L Brands, the parent company of Victoria's Secret, Pink, and Bath & Body Works, said it will report quarterly earnings on Aug. 18 after the bell. Analysts polled by FactSet expect the company to report second-quarter GAAP EPS of $1.08. The retailer said its sales hit $2.351 billion in the nine weeks ended July 3, which compared with sales of $1.369 billion in the year-ago period. Last year's second-quarter sales were hampered by store closures due to the pandemic; sales for the early part of second quarter are up 12% from the same period in 2019, the company said. L Brands stock rose 0.8% in the extended session after ending the regular trading day down 3.2%.