Bed Bath & Beyond shares sink 34% after bankruptcy filing

Shares of Bed Bath & Beyond Inc (BBBY.O) plunged 34% premarket on Monday after the home goods retailer's long fight to save its business ended in bankruptcy.

The once high-flying company filed for bankruptcy protection over the weekend and said it had launched a liquidation sale after failing to secure the funds needed to stay afloat. It also plans to use the Chapter 11 proceedings to conduct a limited sale and marketing process for some or all of its assets.

Frankfurt-listed shares of the company slumped more than 33%, while its U.S. shares were trading at 19.5 cents premarket.

Bed Bath on Monday named interim finance chief Holly Etlin as its new CFO. A bankruptcy expert, Etlin will also serve as its chief restructuring officer, overseeing the liquidation and sale processes.

The retailer has struggled with slumping sales and mounting losses over the past several months after its strategy to sell more store-branded products over national brands backfired, while a rough economy and tight spending also walloped the business.

"Bed, Bath & Beyond fell between the racks, unable to compete with the cut-price offerings of rivals like TJ Maxx (TJX.N) and value ranges of Target (TGT.N), and with their products not seen as little luxuries worth paying more for," said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.

Still, Bed Bath's downfall is not a threat to the broader retail sector, analysts said.

"Companies were conservative on '23 guidance to start the year so the fallout from Bed Bath shouldn't result in any company cutting guidance even after incorporating exposures to other distressed retailers," Evercore analysts wrote in a note on Sunday.

BofA analysts named Walmart Inc (WMT.N), Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O), Target, Wayfair (W.N) and Williams-Sonoma Inc (WSM.N) among companies that would gain share and revenue from the Bed Bath & Beyond wind-down.

Reuters