The US shoe retailer Crocs Inc. continued on its successful course at the beginning of the 2023 financial year. The results for the first quarter presented on Thursday clearly exceeded expectations. In light of the strong start, the company also raised its full-year guidance.
In the period from January to March, group sales reached a level of 884.2 million US dollars (803.1 million euros). This corresponded to an increase of 33.9 percent compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Adjusted for exchange rate changes, revenues grew by 36.2 percent. The company was able to grow strongly both in its own retail business (+33.5 percent, currency-adjusted +35.1 percent) and in the wholesale business (+34.2 percent, currency-adjusted +36.9 percent).
The Crocs brand is growing internationally
The core Crocs brand had sales of 648.8 million US dollars, exceeding the level of the same quarter in the previous year by 19.0 percent (+21.6 percent at constant currency). The strong foreign business in particular proved to be the engine of growth with an increase of 31.8 percent (currency-adjusted +37.7 percent).
The shoe label Heydude contributed 235.4 million US dollars to group sales in the past quarter. In the previous year, its revenues had only been booked since the completion of the takeover on February 17.
The shoe retailer more than doubled its quarterly profit
Operating profit nearly doubled to $234.9 million, surpassing the prior-year level by 98.0 percent because gross margin was higher than the prior-year period and operating expenses rose less than revenue. Adjusted for special effects, the growth rate was 40.8 percent.
The bottom line was a net profit of 149.5 million US dollars (135.8 million euros). The surplus was more than twice as high as in the same period last year, when it was only $72.8 million.
After the company was able to exceed its sales and earnings forecasts in the first quarter, it also set somewhat higher targets for the entire financial year. Management now expects sales to grow by 11 to 14 percent to approximately $3.945 to $4.045 billion. An increase of 10 to 13 percent to 3.9 to 4.0 billion US dollars had previously been promised. Adjusted diluted earnings per share guidance has been raised to $11.17-$11.73 from $11.00-$11.31.