Thanks to a strong final quarter, the US fashion group Ralph Lauren Corporation exceeded expectations in the 2022/23 financial year. On Thursday, the company announced surprisingly strong sales growth. Although the profit fell short of the previous year’s level, it was also above forecasts.
For the fiscal year ended April 1, the group’s sales were $6.44 billion (€6.01 billion). It thus exceeded the level of the previous year, which included one more week of sales, by 3.6 percent. Adjusted for exchange rate changes, revenues grew by 9.4 percent.
All market regions contributed to the increase. In North America, sales increased by 1.8 percent (adjusted for currency effects +2.0 percent) to 3.02 billion US dollars, in Europe by 3.3 percent (adjusted for currency effects +14.3 percent) to 1.84 billion US dollars Dollar and in Asia by 10.9 percent (currency-adjusted +23.1 percent) to 1.43 billion US dollars.
However, higher costs ensured that operating profit fell by 11.8 percent to 704.2 million US dollars. Net income reached $522.7 million (€487.6 million). It was 12.9 percent below the level of the previous year.
For the current 2023/24 financial year, management expects currency-adjusted sales growth in the low single-digit percentage range. The operating margin is expected to increase by 30 to 50 basis points in constant currency. Investments in the range of approximately 275 to 300 million US dollars are planned.