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About three-quarters of Etsy Inc.’s shoppers in the U.S. and U.K. are women, so the company sees an opportunity to target a new demographic to broaden its core customer base.
‘We recently conducted research to better understand men’s shopping attitudes and behaviors and learned that those who identify as men are as likely as women to be intentional shoppers, valuing handcrafted items, supporting small businesses, wanting to make a positive impact with their purchases or buying items that reflect their personality,” said Joshua Silverman, chief executive of Etsy
ETSY,
on the late Wednesday earnings call, according to FactSet.
“Our data also supports that among prospective buyers who are aware of Etsy, there’s no difference in likelihood to visit Etsy by gender.”
Etsy is running gender-neutral ads with placement during U.S. NFL broadcasts on Hulu as part of its effort to reach shoppers who identify as men.
This is just one of a few shifts that the company is making as it adjusts to a world that is moving beyond COVID. Etsy is also enhancing its search function, visuals and more.
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The company is also preparing for a future where shoppers have “less disposable income and many more places to spend it,” a headwind that Chief Financial Officer Rachel Glazer identified in the earnings release.
Etsy beat on first-quarter profit and revenue but guided for a downturn. The stock tumbled 14% in Thursday trading, and has plunged 57% for the year to date.
“As the leader in the niche market of artisanal goods, we believe Etsy has carved out a favorable competitive position with formidable barriers,” wrote Stifel in a note.
“The company is exiting a transition period where operations were streamlined, resources refocused and a number of initiatives implemented to reinvigorate
GMS [gross merchandise sales] growth.”
Stifel rates Etsy stock buy with a target price of $130, down from $160.
“Despite the material slowdown in growth and the macro challenges, Etsy has still hung on to the vast majority of its Covid gains, outpacing many e-commerce peers,” wrote Wedbush.
“While it is losing some buyers on a net basis, it is still just a fraction of the total it brought on during the pandemic which still makes the overall trends since COVID quite impressive for Etsy.”
Wedbush rates Etsy stock outperform with a $124 price target, cut from $185.
