Lululemon Athletica vs VF
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KIRA’s take AI analyst
I put Lululemon Athletica and VF side by side, using each one’s latest annual report. Here is what stands out:
- Lululemon Athletica is the larger business, with $11.1B of revenue in fiscal 2025 against $9.6B for VF.
- Lululemon Athletica grew revenue faster (4.9%, against 1.1%).
- Lululemon Athletica kept more of each dollar of sales as operating profit (19.9% operating margin, against 6.0%).
- Lululemon Athletica turned more of its sales into free cash flow (8.3% FCF margin, against 5.8%).
- Lululemon Athletica earned a higher return on the capital invested in it (56.8%, against 9.0%).
Who comes out ahead
Of the 11 measures where higher (or lower) is clearly better, how many each company leads.
Lululemon Athletica
LULU
10/11
Revenue growth5-year growthGross marginOperating marginNet marginFCF marginReturn on capitalReturn on equityNet debt / EBITDAShare count change
VF
VFC
1/11
Piotroski F-score
Side by side
Best in the row
| Latest fiscal year | LULU FY25 | VFC FY26 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| Market cap | $11.6B | $6.7B |
| Revenue | $11.1B | $9.6B |
| Free cash flow | $922M | $557M |
| Net income | $1.6B | $255M |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth | 4.9% | 1.1% |
| 5-year growth | 20.3% | 0.8% |
| Share count change | −3.9% | 0.8% |
| Profitability | ||
| Gross margin | 56.6% | 54.8% |
| Operating margin | 19.9% | 6.0% |
| Net margin | 14.2% | 2.7% |
| FCF margin | 8.3% | 5.8% |
| Return on capital | 56.8% | 9.0% |
| Return on equity | 34.0% | 15.3% |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net debt | −$1.8B | $2.7B |
| Net debt / EBITDA | −0.7x | 3.2x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $1.2B | $141M |
| Valuation & quality | ||
| P/E | 8.5x | — |
| Piotroski F-score | 5 | 7 |
Ten years
Revenue
Operating margin
Free cash flow
Return on capital
Each company's latest fiscal year; fiscal years end in different months. The best value in each row is highlighted where higher (or lower) is clearly better. Not investment advice.