Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Under Armour (UAA) Stock Up on Q3 Earnings Beat, Raised View

Read MoreHide Full Article

Under Armour, Inc. (UAA - Free Report) reported third-quarter 2018 results, wherein both top and bottom lines improved year over year and came ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate. In fact, this marked the company’s fourth consecutive quarter of top-line beat. The solid quarter also encouraged management to raise its earnings per share view for 2018, which seems to have perked up investors’ sentiments.

Notably, shares of the company are up roughly 15% during the pre-market trading hours. Year to date, this Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock has rallied about 25%, easily outpacing the industry’s growth of 11.1%.



The company’s adjusted earnings came in at 25 cents a share, which crushed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 12 cents and increased 13.6% from the year-ago period adjusted earnings of 22 cents. The year-over-year upside can be attributed to enhanced revenues, along with improved gross margin and lower interest expenses.

Under Armour, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Under Armour, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | Under Armour, Inc. Quote

Let’s Delve Deep

Net revenues rose 2.4% (up 3% on a currency neutral basis) to nearly $1,443 million, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,408 million. Revenues largely gained from solid international sales.

Apparel sales rose 4.2% to $978.4 million, while net revenues in the Footwear and Accessories categories declined 0.1% to $284.9 million and 5.9% to $116.2 million, respectively. Meanwhile, Licensing revenues fell 8.6% year over year to $31.4 million, whereas the company’s Connected Fitness segment reported an increase of 20.2% to $32.2 million.

Net revenues from North America slipped 1.6% (down 1.4% on a currency neutral basis) to $1,059.5 million. Remarkably, international business continued to witness sturdy growth, rising 15.1% (up 16.7% on a currency neutral basis) to $351.2 million. International business now represents 24.3% of total revenues. Within international business, net revenues from EMEA, Asia-pacific and Latin America grew 15.4%, 14.6% and 15.8% to $147.6 million, $149.4 million and $54.3 million, respectively.

The company’s adjusted gross margin expanded 20 basis points (bps) to 46.5%, courtesy of improved product costs and reduced promotions, partly negated by unfavorable channel mix.

SG&A expenses rose 5% to $528 million, while as a percentage of net revenues the same expanded 100 bps to 36.6% on account of sustained investments in direct-to-consumer, footwear and international businesses.

Interest expenses dropped 4.4% to $9.2 million, and restructuring and impairment charges fell sharply to $18.6 million.

Other Financial Details

Under Armour ended the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $168.7 million, long-term debt (net of current maturities) of $703.5 million and total shareholders' equity of $2,005.9 million.

During the first nine months of 2018, the company generated $118.8 million as net cash from operating activities.

Update on Restructuring Plan

Under Armour is on track with its 2018 restructuring plan and anticipates incurring pre-tax restructuring and related charges of nearly $200-$220 million in this regard. Up until the third quarter, the company incurred pre-tax charges of $154 million, with $24 million reported in the third quarter.

2018 Guidance

Management is pleased with its quarterly outcome, which reflects good progress of Under Armour’s multi-year transformation plan. The company is focused on strengthening its brand through enhanced customer-connections and effective innovations. All said, the company is confident about its long-term prospects, and ability to enrich consumers and shareholders’ experiences.

Management envisions 2018 net revenues to increase 3-4%. Revenues from North America are likely to decline low-single digits now compared with the previous projection of a low to mid-single-digit decrease. The company now projects international revenues to increase roughly 25% compared with more than 25% growth anticipated earlier.

From the product point of view, apparel is projected to improve at a mid-single-digit rate, while footwear sales are likely to rise low-single digits. Accessories is now anticipated to witness a mid-single-digit fall, while it was expected to fall at a low-single-digit rate earlier.

Under Armour expects adjusted gross margin to improve marginally on account of lower product costs and reduced promotional activity, partially offset by inventory management impacts.

Adjusted operating income is now expected around $150-$165 million, up from the recently upgraded range of $140-$160 million. The company projects interest and other expense net to be about $50 million now, reflecting an increase from the previous guidance of $45 million, due to adverse currency translations.

Now, management envisions 2018 adjusted earnings per share of 19-22 cents, up from the recently raised guidance of 16-19 cents. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged at 17 cents, which is likely to witness upward revision.

The company expects to incur capital expenditures of nearly $175 million in 2018, down from $200 million expected earlier.

Don’t Miss These Solid Apparel Stocks

G-III Apparel (GIII - Free Report) , with long-term earnings per share growth rate of 15%, carries a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

lululemon (LULU - Free Report) has long-term earnings per share growth rate of 19.2% and a Zacks Rank #1.

Guess? (GES - Free Report) has long-term earnings per share growth rate of 17.5% and a Zacks Rank #2.

The Hottest Tech Mega-Trend of All

Last year, it generated $8 billion in global revenues. By 2020, it's predicted to blast through the roof to $47 billion. Famed investor Mark Cuban says it will produce "the world's first trillionaires," but that should still leave plenty of money for regular investors who make the right trades early.

See Zacks' 3 Best Stocks to Play This Trend >>

Published in