Wolverine Worldwide surprises with strong second quarter growth

US footwear and apparel supplier Wolverine World Wide Inc. (Wolverine Worldwide) continued on a growth path in the second quarter of the 2025 financial year. On Wednesday, the group announced surprisingly strong increases in revenue and earnings.

In the three months to 28 June, consolidated revenue amounted to 474.2 million dollars. This exceeded the prior-year figure by 11.5 percent. Adjusted for exchange rate changes, revenue increased by 10.3 percent.

Growth drivers: Merrell and Saucony

The group owed the significant increase to double-digit revenue growth in its core brands Merrell (plus 10.7 percent) and Saucony (plus 41.5 percent). These more than offset declines at Wolverine (minus 7.5 percent) and Sweaty Betty (minus 6.1 percent).

Thanks to revenue growth and an increase in the gross margin from 43.1 to 47.2 percent, operating profit rose by 39.9 percent to 40.7 million dollars. Net profit attributable to shareholders grew by 88.7 percent to 26.8 million dollars. Diluted earnings per share increased from 0.17 dollars to 0.32 dollars; adjusted for currency effects, it even rose from 0.15 dollars to 0.34 dollars.

CEO and President Chris Hufnagel was extremely pleased with the latest developments. "Our second quarter results exceeded our expectations, delivering our strongest revenue growth in several years," he said in a statement. "This growth, coupled with another record gross margin, helped to more than double our earnings per share compared to the prior year."

Revenue to increase further in the third quarter

In the first half of the year as a whole, consolidated revenue reached 886.5 million dollars, an increase of 8.1 percent compared to the same period last year. The bottom line was a net profit attributable to shareholders of 37.9 million dollars, compared to a loss of 0.3 million dollars in the first six months of the previous year.

Given the ongoing uncertainties regarding international trade policy and macroeconomic conditions, management again refrained from providing guidance for the full financial year. For the third quarter, it expects revenue growth of 2.1 to 4.4 percent to between 450 and 460 million dollars. Diluted earnings per share are expected to reach between 0.24 and 0.28 dollars.

This article was translated to English using an AI tool.

OR CONTINUE WITH

Merrell

Saucony

Sweaty Betty

Wolverine

Wolverine Worldwide