What happened lululemon athletica (NASDAQ: LULU) shareholders outperformed a booming market last month. The stock jumped 34% in May compared to a 4.5% increase in the S&P 500, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence. The rally was part of a longer boost for the apparel specialist's shares, which are up over 500% since mid-2017. Image source: Getty Images. So what May's jump reflected growing optimism on the part of investors that Lululemon will quickly bounce back from the COVID-19 sales disruption. The chain's last earnings report provided plenty of impressive metrics to support that judgment, including a 20% revenue increase, rising market share in niches like menswear and kid's apparel, and increased profitability. Yet the real test will be whether Lululemon shifted more business to its online channel, as Nike did, before quickly picking up where it left off with its popular athleisure releases. Now what The retail chain will announce fiscal first-quarter results on June 11 in a report that will reflect the deepest impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Investors are betting that Lululemon will show strong e-commerce sales, but that announcement is still likely to include at least a short-term pressure from falling customer traffic and worsening economic growth trends. 10 stocks we like better than Lululemon AthleticaWhen investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the ten best stocks for investors to buy right now... and Lululemon Athletica wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of April 16, 2020 Demitrios Kalogeropoulos owns shares of Nike. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Lululemon Athletica and Nike. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.Source