Puma sales decrease in Q4, forecasts challenging H1 ahead

Puma Group sales decreased by 4 percent currency adjusted and 9.8 percent reported to 1,982.2 million euros in the fourth quarter and net income decreased by 42.3 percent to 0.8 million euros and earnings per share amounted to 0.01 euros.

The company’s full year sales however increased by 6.6 percent currency adjusted and 1 percent reported to 8,601.7 million euros.

Puma expects to achieve mid-single-digit currency-adjusted sales growth and EBIT in the range of 620 million euros to 700 million euros for the financial year 2024.

Commenting on the company’s performance, Arne Freundt, chief executive officer of Puma said: “In a volatile environment that impacted the whole industry, Puma delivered strong growth and profitability fully in line with the outlook.”

“Going into 2024, we see that the market environment remains challenging. As we are working through this ongoing challenging trade environment together with our retail partners with a clear focus on sell-through and prudent sell-in especially in the US and Europe, we expect a softer first half of the year. The persistent adverse currencies will also continue to be a pressure on the profitability in the first half 2024,” added Freundt.

Puma posts sales decline in Q4

Puma’s sales in the Americas region were significantly impacted by the devaluation of the Argentine peso, resulting in a decline of 6.4 percent to 846 million euros. In the EMEA region, sales decreased by 5.2 percent to 667.9 million euros. Asia/Pacific sales increased by 2.8 percent to 468.3 million euros, supported by strong growth in Greater China and India. The rest of Asia was softer, impacted by consumer sentiment and warm weather conditions.

The company’s wholesale business declined by 8.7 percent to 1,355 million euros. The direct-to-consumer (DTC) business grew by 8 percent to 627.2 million euros, with underlying sales growth similar to the previous quarter’s 17.4 percent.

The gross profit margin improved by 290 basis points to 47 percent, the operating result (EBIT) was up 133 percent to 94.4 million euros and the EBIT margin improved to 4.8 percent.

Puma’s sales increase across markets except Americas in 2023

During the year under review, the Asia/Pacific region led the growth with a 13.6 percent increase in sales, followed by the EMEA region with a 13.4 percent increase in sales. Sales in the Americas region decreased by 2.4 percent due to the devaluation of the Argentine peso.

The wholesale business was up by 3.5 percent to 6,468.7 million euros and the DTC business increased by 17.5 percent to 2,133 million euros. Sales in company-owned & operated retail stores increased 18.8 percent and e-commerce increased 15 percent.

The company said footwear continued to lead the growth with 12.4 percent followed by accessories with growth of 3.1 percent, while apparel remained flat.

The gross profit margin increased by 20 basis points to 46.3 percent, the operating result (EBIT) decreased by 3 percent to 621.6 million euros and the EBIT margin dropped to 7.2 percent.

The financial result decreased to negative 143.3 million euros and net income decreased by 13.7 percent to 304.9 million euros, while the earnings per share amounted to 2.03 euros.

Puma board plans to propose to the annual general meeting on May 22, 2024 the distribution of a dividend of 0.82 euros per share for the financial year 2023.