In the first quarter, Puma’s sales climbed by 0.5 per cent currency adjusted to € 2,102.3 million.
Puma anticipates mid-single-digit currency-adjusted sales growth and an operating result (EBIT) in the range of € 620 million to € 700 million for the financial year 2024, supported by the ongoing brand momentum and despite ongoing geopolitical and macroeconomic challenges. Net income is expected to change in 2024 in line with the operating result.
Commenting on the first quarter performance, Arne Freundt, chief executive officer of Puma SE said in a statement, “While the market continues to be volatile, we delivered growth and gross profit margin improvement despite significant currency headwinds and high prior year comparables.”
According to the corporation, the Americas area saw a 1 per cent increase in sales to € 790 million, marking the first positive growth in sales in four quarters, with the US exhibiting a sequential improvement. Greater China’s continuous expansion propelled a 0.6 per cent increase in sales to € 456.6 million in the Asia/Pacific area. Sales in the EMEA area remained constant at € 855.7 million.
Direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales at Puma increased by 13.5 per cent to € 494.2 million, while the company’s wholesale operations fell by 2.9 per cent to € 1,608.1 million.
Footwear had a 3.1 per cent increase in sales, mostly due to the sustained high demand for football and other performance categories; clothing and accessory sales fell by 2.4 per cent and 3.2 per cent, respectively.
While the operating result (EBIT) dropped by 9.4 per cent to € 159 million, the gross profit margin increased by 100 basis points to 47.5 per cent. The EBIT margin decreased by 50 basis points to 7.6 per cent as a result. The net income dropped by 25.5 per cent to € 87.3 million, while the financial result dropped to € 26.8 million.