Wolverine Worldwide Reports Second Quarter 2025 Results

Wolverine World Wide, Inc. (NYSE:WWW) today reported financial results for the second quarter ended June 28, 2025.

"Our second quarter results exceeded our expectations, which led to the strongest revenue growth we've seen in several years. This growth, coupled with another quarter of record gross margin, helped more than double our earnings per share year-over-year," said Chris Hufnagel, President and Chief Executive Officer of Wolverine Worldwide. "We're executing our new brand-building model at pace, and we've made meaningful strides in improving the profitability of the business, along with strengthening the balance sheet. I remain confident in the things we can control as we navigate continued uncertainties due to the global trade and consumer environment. We're building a new company, and we're driven by our vision to make every day better — focused squarely on our consumers and delivering value for our shareholders."

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Financial results for 2025, and comparable results from 2024, in each case, for our ongoing business exclude the results of the Sperry business, which was sold in January 2024. Tables have been provided in the back of this release showing the impact of these adjustments on our financial results.

SECOND QUARTER 2025 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Gross margin improved significantly in the second quarter due to a healthier sales mix, lower promotional activity, and the benefit of supply chain cost initiatives, with minimal incremental impact from U.S. tariffs.

Inventory at the end of the quarter was $316 million, up $19 million, or approximately 6.4%, compared to the prior year.

Net Debt at the end of the quarter was $568 million, down $99 million, or approximately 14.8%, compared to the prior year.

THIRD QUARTER 2025 OUTLOOK

Following strong financial performance in the first half of 2025, the outlook for the third quarter reflects the Company's expectations for continued momentum in the business.

• Revenue to be approximately $450 million to $460 million, representing growth of approximately 2.1% to 4.4% compared to the third quarter 2024 ongoing business revenue and constant currency growth of approximately 1.5% to 3.8%.
• Gross margin to be approximately 47.0%, up 170 basis points compared to third quarter 2024 gross margin.
• Operating margin to be approximately 7.3%, down 70 basis points compared to third quarter 2024 operating margin, and adjusted operating margin to be approximately 8.3%, up 60 basis points compared to third quarter 2024 adjusted operating margin for our ongoing business.
• Diluted earnings per share in the range of $0.24 to $0.28 and adjusted diluted earnings per share in the range of $0.28 to $0.32.
• Diluted weighted average shares of approximately 81.3 million.

FULL-YEAR 2025 OUTLOOK

Due to uncertainty around tariffs and related macro-economic conditions, the Company is not providing a full-year 2025 outlook at this time.

NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES

Measures referred to in this release as "adjusted" financial results and the financial results of the "ongoing business" are non-GAAP measures. Adjusted financial results exclude environmental and other related costs net of recoveries, non-cash impairment of long-lived assets, reorganization costs, and costs associated with divestitures. The financial results of the ongoing business exclude financial results from the Sperry business. The Company also presents constant currency information, which is a non-GAAP measure that excludes the impact of fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates. The Company calculates constant currency basis by converting the current-period local currency financial results using the prior period exchange rates and comparing these adjusted amounts to the Company's current period reported results. The Company believes providing each of these non-GAAP measures provides valuable supplemental information regarding its results of operations, consistent with how the Company evaluates performance.

The Company has provided a reconciliation of each of the above non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure. The Company believes these non-GAAP measures provide useful information to both management and investors because they increase the comparability of current period results to prior period results by adjusting for certain items that may not be indicative of core operating results and enable better identification of trends in our business. The adjusted financial results are used by management to, and allow investors to, evaluate the operating performance of the Company on a comparable basis. Management does not, nor should investors, consider such non-GAAP financial measures in isolation from, or as a substitute for, financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP.

EARNINGS CALL INFORMATION

The Company will host a conference call today at 8:30 a.m. ET to discuss these results and current business trends. The conference call will be broadcast live and accessible under the "Investor Relations" tab at www.wolverineworldwide.com. A replay of the conference call will be available on the Company's website for a period of approximately 30 days.

ABOUT WOLVERINE WORLDWIDE

Founded in 1883, Wolverine World Wide, Inc. (NYSE:WWW) is one of the world's leading designers, marketers, and licensors of branded casual footwear and apparel, performance outdoor and athletic footwear and apparel, kids' footwear, industrial work boots and apparel, and uniform footwear. The Company's portfolio includes Merrell®, Saucony®, Sweaty Betty®, Hush Puppies®, Wolverine®, Chaco®, Bates®, HYTEST®, and Stride Rite®. Wolverine Worldwide is also the global footwear licensee of the popular brands Cat® and Harley-Davidson®. Based in Rockford, Michigan, for more than 140 years, the Company's products are carried by leading retailers in the U.S. and globally in approximately 170 countries and territories. Wolverine Worldwide is a Great Place to Work® Certified™ company. For additional information, please visit our website, www.wolverineworldwide.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the results of the momentum in Saucony and Merrell; the Company's execution of its brand-building model and navigation of continued uncertainties due to the global trade environment; the Company's outlook for the third quarter of 2025 including, among others: reported and constant currency revenue; reported gross margin; reported and adjusted operating margin; reported and adjusted net earnings; reported and adjusted diluted earnings per share; and diluted weighted average shares. In addition, words such as "estimates," "anticipates," "believes," "forecasts," "step," "plans," "predicts," "focused," "projects," "outlook," "is likely," "expects," "intends," "should," "will," "confident," variations of such words, and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties, and assumptions ("Risk Factors") that are difficult to predict with regard to timing, extent, likelihood, and degree of occurrence. Risk Factors include, among others: changes in general economic conditions, employment rates, business conditions, interest rates, tax policies, and other factors affecting consumer spending and confidence in the markets and regions in which the Company's products are sold; increases or changes in duties, tariffs, quotas or applicable assessment in countries of import and export; the inability for any reason to effectively compete in global footwear, apparel and direct-to-consumer markets; the inability to maintain positive brand images and anticipate, understand and respond to changing footwear and apparel trends and consumer preferences; the inability to effectively manage inventory levels; foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations; currency restrictions; supply chain and capacity constraints, production and distribution disruptions, including service interruptions at shipping and receiving ports, reduction in operating hours, labor shortages, and facility closures resulting in production delays at the Company's manufacturers, quality issues, price increases or other risks associated with foreign sourcing; the cost, including the effect of inflationary pressures, and availability of raw materials, inventories, services and labor for contract manufacturers; changes in relationships with, including the loss of, significant wholesale customers; risks related to the significant investment in, and performance of, the Company's direct-to-consumer operations; risks related to expansion into new markets and complementary product categories; the impact of seasonality and unpredictable weather conditions; the impact of changes in general economic conditions, potential economic slowdown and/or the credit markets on the Company's manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, joint venture partners and wholesale customers; changes in the Company's effective tax rates; failure of licensees or distributors to meet planned annual sales goals or to make timely payments to the Company; the risks of doing business in developing countries, and politically or economically volatile areas; the ability to secure and protect owned intellectual property or use licensed intellectual property; legal compliance and litigation risks, including with respect to federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment, environmental remediation and other related costs, and environmental effects on human health; risks of breach of the Company's databases or other systems, or those of its vendors, which contain certain personal information, payment card data or proprietary information, due to cyberattack or other similar events; strategic actions, including new initiatives and ventures, acquisitions and dispositions, and the Company's success in integrating acquired businesses, including Sweaty Betty®; risks related to stockholder activism; the risk of impairment to goodwill and other intangibles; the success of the Company's restructuring and realignment initiatives undertaken from time to time; changes in future pension funding requirements and pension expenses; and additional factors discussed in the Company's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and exhibits thereto. The foregoing Risk Factors, as well as other existing Risk Factors and new Risk Factors that emerge from time to time, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. Given these or other risks and uncertainties, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. Furthermore, the Company undertakes no obligation to update, amend, or clarify forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

The following tables contain information regarding the non-GAAP financial measures used by the Company in the presentation of its financial results:

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Jared Filippone, CFA

[email protected]