e.l.f. Beauty's International Sales Jump 61%: What's Driving It?

e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. ELF is expanding its presence across international markets through broader retail distribution, deeper penetration in key countries and new brand launches. The international business was a standout in the first quarter of fiscal 2027, with international net sales rising 61% year over year compared with 29% growth in the United States. International penetration has also doubled over the past five years and now represents 21% of total net sales.

The growth comes alongside broader brand expansion across established and newer markets. In the core e.l.f. brand, trends improved meaningfully in both the United Kingdom and Germany. Germany saw a major turn to very strong positive growth following the brand’s introduction at DM, after earlier comparisons were affected by the large ROSSMANN launch. In the UK, performance improved after a period marked by heavy promotional activity and the restart of awareness-building and marketing efforts. e.l.f. is also set to expand its presence at Boots in the fall. 

The international push extends beyond the core brand. Naturium, which launched with Sephora in Australia and New Zealand last October, has reached the No. 1 ranking in body at Sephora in those markets and is scheduled to enter Sephora in Canada and Mexico this fall. rhode has posted record-setting launches with Sephora in North America and the UK and with Mecca in Australia and New Zealand, reaching the No. 1 beauty-brand ranking at both retailers.

e.l.f. Beauty is also expanding into Brazil through Sephora this fall, building on its No. 1 cosmetics-brand ranking with Sephora in Mexico. Together, these developments reflect broader retail and geographic expansion across e.l.f., Naturium and rhode.

e.l.f. Beauty’s Zacks Rank & Share Price Performance

Shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have gained 87.3% over the past three months, outperforming both the industry and the S&P 500, which increased 27.1% and 3.5%, respectively. The stock also outperformed the broader Consumer Staples sector, which gained 2.1% during the same period.

ELF Stock's Past Three Months Performance

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Is e.l.f. Beauty a Value Play Stock?

e.l.f. Beauty currently trades at a forward 12-month P/E ratio of 28.17, which is up from the industry average of 23.73 and the sector average of 17.02. This valuation positions the stock at a premium compared with its industry peers and the broader sector.

ELF P/E Ratio (Forward 12 Months)

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Stocks to Consider

Five Below, Inc. FIVE operates as a specialty value retailer in the United States and currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Five Below’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings calls for growth of 18.4% and 49.2%, respectively, from the year-ago reported numbers. FIVE delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 68.3%, on average.

Dollar Tree Inc. DLTR is an operator of discount variety stores offering a broad assortment of everyday consumables and discretionary merchandise. The company currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). DLTR delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 12.2%, on average.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Dollar Tree’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings indicates growth of 6.7% and 32.2%, respectively, from the year-ago reported numbers. 

Target Corporation TGT operates as a general merchandise retailer in the United States. It currently carries a Zacks Rank of 2. TGT delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 10.5%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Target’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings indicates growth of 4.7% and 37.8%, respectively, from the year-ago actuals.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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