Author: Thomas J. Ryan

On an analyst call, Nautilus Inc.’s CEO Jim Barr said sales in the second quarter ended September 30 remain strongly above pre-pandemic levels and membership growth in its digital fitness platform, JRNY, attests to the long-term opportunity of at-home fitness. However, quarterly sales were significantly down year-over-year due to tough comparisons and guidance for the year was lowered due to tighter inventory controls from retailers.

HanesBrands Inc. reported global Champion brand sales slumped 14 percent on a reported basis (9 percent in constant currencies) in the third quarter. On an analyst call, Steve Bratspies, CEO, said Champion was hurt by soft consumer demand in the U.S., order cancellations in the U.S. from late shipments as retailers tightly managed inventory, and lingering COVID challenges in certain Asian markets.

On his last quarterly conference call as CEO of Adidas, Kasper Rorsted touted his achievements at Adidas and largely attributed the company’s recent shortfalls to the pandemic.

Clarus Corp. lowered its guidance for the year as strong demand for its Precision Sport segment, led by Sierra and Barnes, was offset by softer sales in its Adventure segment, which consists Rhino-Rack and Maxtrax. The Outdoor segment, led by Black Diamond, saw strong demand but is facing some supply chain challenges and reduced open-to-buys from larger accounts.

News that Puma’s outgoing CEO Bjorn Gulden may succeed Kasper Rorsted as Adidas’ CEO was greeted favorably by Wall Street as several analysts were hopeful Gulden may be able to replicate Puma’s recent success at the struggling Adidas. His exit was seen as slightly negative for Puma.

On its third-quarter analyst call, Chris Killoy, president and CEO, said new products are selling strong but sales of modern sporting rifles and polymer centerfire pistols remain soft as inflationary pressures “constrained discretionary spending.”

Compass Diversified (CODI) reported BOA, Marucci Sports and 5.11 all delivered healthy double-digit sales growth in the third quarter. Primaloft saw flattish growth on a pro-forma basis while Velocity Outdoor’s sales were down slightly.

On a call with analysts, Vista Outdoor officials said inflation and rising interest rates have impacted consumer spending at a faster rate than the company expected last quarter, prompting the company to reduce its outlook for its fiscal year. Sudhanshu Priyadarshi, SVP and CFO, also noted that retailers are working through higher inventory while promotional activity rises.

Shares of Crocs, Inc. climbed $9.55, or 14.2 percent, to $76.60 on Thursday after the parent of Crocs and Heydude reported third-quarter results that handily exceeded Wall Street expectations while raising its outlook for the year. Andrew Rees, CEO, said on an analyst call, ““Consumer demand for both the Crocs and Heydude brands is exceptional.”

Shares of Under Armour closed up about 12 percent on Thursday after the company reported better-than-expected earnings for its latest quarter while only slightly lowering its full-year guidance. Under Armour interim president and CEO Colin Browne told analysts on a call, “In a highly challenging retail environment, we’re pleased that we’re able to deliver second-quarter results that were in line with our expectations.”

Canada Goose Holdings, Inc. significantly cut its outlook for its fiscal year ending March 2023 as COVID-19 restrictions continue to slow the recovery in China and macroeconomic concerns mount. The downward adjustment comes despite Canada Goose reporting second-quarter results that handily topped analyst targets.

Big 5 Sporting Goods Corp. reported a challenging third quarter against tough year-ago comparisons and guided for a downbeat fourth quarter despite continued progress on merchandise margins and significantly improved inventory levels. Steve Miller, president and CEO, told analysts, “Hopefully, we turn out to be conservative.”

Escalade, Inc. is seeing momentum in pickleball and cornhole but said efforts to reduce inventories by mass merchants led to declining earnings and sales in the third quarter.

Newell Brands’ Outdoor and Recreation segment reported an 18.4 percent decline in core sales due to a shift of retailer orders into the first half and softening demand. Newell officials also said they expect the recent pandemic-related benefits to “continue to subside” for its outdoors and home businesses.

At SFIA’s 2022 Industry Leaders Summit, Matt Powell, senior industry advisor, sports to The NPD Group, outlined how most active lifestyle categories have run down in 2022 against elevated 2021 comparisons but remain ahead of 2019.