SGB Executive Sports & Fitness
Finish Line Upgraded By Buckingham Research
Buckingham Research raised its rating on Finish Line to “Neutral” from “Underperform” in part because of its depressed stock price, healthy balance sheet and expectation that margins should start improving by its back-to-school quarter.
Wolverine Worldwide’s Q4 Boosted By Improved Margins
Boosted by fatter gross margins, Wolverine Worldwide reported adjusted earnings per share in the fourth quarter of 41 cents per share, a 20 percent increase over the last year. Underlying growth of 1.7 percent. Eighteen percent growth at Merrell and nearly 30 percent at Chaco helped offset declines in the low double digits at the flagship Wolverine brand, high single digits at Sperry and mid-single digits at Saucony.
VF’s Q4 Powered By Vans, North Face Misses Plan
VF Corp. reported sales at Vans vaulted 35 percent in the fourth quarter, led by a 38 percent climb in the Americas. North Face missed plan in part due to aggressive efforts to clear Amazon of unauthorized dealers and reduced off-price sales overall but is still expected to see high-single digit growth for 2018.
Outdoor & Recreation Drives Newell Brands’ Play Segment Growth In Q4
Newell Brands reported sales in its Play segment climbed 6.6 percent in the fourth quarter. Core sales grew 5.4 percent, reflecting strong growth on Coleman, Contigo, Marmot and Team Sports partially offset by declines on Fishing.
Puma’s Women’s Focus Paying Off
Following the report of its third strong annual campaign in a row, Bjørn Gulden, CEO, Puma SE, detailed the many ways the brand’s focus on female training, its celebrity brand ambassadors, and its ability to amplify its voice through social media is helping drive the company’s turnaround.
Aisle Talk, Week of February 12
Top headlines from the active lifestyle industry you may have missed this week.
FGL Sports Q4 Boosted By Chilly Winter
FGL Sports marked a return to mid-single digit comp growth in the fourth quarter with the boost of chilly Winter. Canadian Tire Corp, its parent, also indicated it acquired Sher-Wood Athletics as part of an overall effort by the company to increase its number of owned brands and appointed TJ Flood as president, FGL Sports.
Dick’s Celebrates Olympic Contenders
SGB reached out to Ryan Eckel, VP of Brand at Dick’s Sporting Goods, to discuss the inspiration behind the Contenders program, which allows U.S. Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls to work in Dick’s locations to help support their dreams. Twelve participants in the retailer’s Contenders program are participating in PyeongChang.
Shimano’s Cycling Sales Regain Momentum
Shimano saw sales in its Bicycle Components segment returned to double-digit growth in the fourth quarter while showing modest gains in its Fishing Tackle segment.
Asics America Widens Q4 Loss
Asics America widened its loss in the fourth quarter but saw earnings improve significantly in the full year. Sales in the region slid 7.2 percent in the quarter.
Under Armour’s Share Climb On Sales Beat, Signs Of Stability
While reporting a fourth-quarter loss and a significant expansion of its restructuring program, shares of Under Armour climbed $2.49, or 17.5 percent, on Tuesday to $16.72 as sales came in above guidance with the help of momentum internationally and the overall business showed some signs of stabilizing.
Aisle Talk, Week of February 5
Top headlines from the active lifestyle industry you may have missed this week.
Columbia Q4 Boosted By Improving U.S. Business
President and CEO Tim Boyle said, “In the fourth quarter, the U.S. wholesale channel played a significant role contributing to our top line beat relative to our October outlook, aided by improved order conversion.”
Champion Grows Double-Digits In Q4
“We think Champion is doing really well,” said HanesBrands’ CEO Gerald W. Evans Jr. on a conference call with analysts. “It’s got a lot of upside to it from a global standpoint.”
Skechers Delivers Blowout Q4
With all distribution channels delivering double-digit growth, Skechers USA reported fourth-quarter results that came in well above guidance.
