Dive Brief:

• VF Corp., which runs a stable of apparel and footwear brands, including The North Face, Vans and Nautica, on Friday reported that first quarter revenue from continuing operations fell 1.9% to $2.58 billion (down 1% on a currency-neutral basis) and below the FactSet consensus of $2.73 billion cited by MarketWatch. Key growth drivers were international sales, direct-to-consumer platforms and the Outdoor & Action Sports segment, according to a company press release.

• Q1 profit fell 11% to $214.68 million or 52 cents per share, down from $241.94 million or 56 cents per share in the year-ago period and missing FactSet analyst expectations cited by MarketWatch for 55 cents per share. Gross margin from continuing operations in the quarter improved by 150 basis points (or 190 basis points, currency neutral) to 50.2%. Q1 direct-to-consumer revenue rose 6% (7% percent currency neutral) with e-commerce sales up 25% (26% currency neutral).

• By segment, Q1 revenue from its Outdoor & Action Sports brands rose 2% (4%, currency neutral); The North Face brand revenue rose 6% (8% currency neutral); and Vans revenue increased 5% (7% percent currency neutral). International revenue rose 2% (5% percent currency neutral), including 5% growth (10% percent currency neutral) in China.

Dive Insight:

VF Corp. fell short of profit and sales expectations amid a period that president/CEO Steve Rendle described as “a retail backdrop that continues to experience significant dislocation.”

The company updated its full-year outlook, saying it expects revenue to increase at a low single-digit percentage rate, including about a two percentage-point negative impact from changes in foreign currency. Gross margin this year is expected to reach 49.6%, a 20 basis point increase over 2016; that includes about a 70 basis-point negative impact from changes in foreign currency.

“Our diversified value-creation model and our focus on becoming a more agile and consumer-centric organization position us to accelerate growth through 2017 and execute against our recently announced 2021 strategic growth plan,” Rendle said in a statement Friday.

But some investors have become impatient with the company’s status quo and are urging the company to add to its stable of brands. At the company’s investor day last month, Rendle noted that acquisitions are not a major focus of its current “organic growth” plan. “There are not acquisitions envisioned in this plan. Don't take that to mean that we are not focused on acquisitions. It still remains one of our top priorities,” he said, according to a transcript on the company’s website. “But what it means is that when there is an acquisition, it will be accretive to these numbers and will continue to drive greater value. Our TSR model will remain balanced between earnings growth and free cash flow.”

But, considering the muted prospects for apparel and footwear retail, it’s not clear where the company will find such “organic growth,” wrote Bloomberg “Gadfly” columnists Brooke Sutherland and Shelly Banjo about that presentation.