Puma said on Wednesday that it expects the geopolitical and macroeconomic environment to slow sales growth this year.

The sports equipment manufacturer announced this morning that its sales should grow by around 5% at constant exchange rates in 2024, compared with a 6.6% increase in 2023, according to its preliminary results.

The consensus was expecting growth of around 8%.

The group added that it was expecting operating income before non-recurring items (Ebit) of between €620 and €700 million this year, compared with €622 million last year, again according to preliminary data.

These announcements pushed down the share price on the Frankfurt stock exchange, where Puma posted the biggest drop on the MDAX mid-cap index, with a decline of almost 7%.

Puma will publish its final annual results for 2023 on February 27, ahead of a much-anticipated investor meeting two days later.

The share is already down more than 20% since January 1.

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