Italian luxury goods group Salvatore Ferragamo said on Thursday its revenue dropped by 4% at constant currencies in the fourth quarter, flagging “encouraging results” from its direct-to-consumer sales which were overall flat in the last three months of the year.
Sales in the North American region, which accounted for 29% of total revenue, were up 6.3% in the quarter. However, the Asia Pacific area saw a 25% drop in revenue at constant exchange rates.
The slowdown in global demand for luxury goods, especially in China, has made the group’s turnaround harder. Overall preliminary revenues reached 1.03 billion euros in 2024, in line with analysts’ estimates, according to an LSEG consensus.
“January shows an acceleration in our DTC channel’s growth, albeit supported by the different timing of the Chinese New Year and a favourable comparison base versus last year”, Chief Executive Marco Gobbetti said in a statement.
Deckers Outdoor on Thursday beat third-quarter sales estimates on robust holiday demand for its Hoka running shoes, but an in-line annual forecast caused the footwear maker’s shares to tumble 17% in extended trading.
Hoka shoes with their oversized soles have been gaining market share from brands such as Nike in the sportswear category. The brand, which retails for up to $300 in the United States, have also enjoyed full-price sales.
This drove up the company’s third-quarter revenue by 17% to $1.83 billion, beating analysts’ average estimate of $1.73 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG. Deckers also raised its annual net sales forecast for a second time this year.
“The guidance looks pretty conservative and considering the beat, it’s bit of a negative read into the out quarter,” said Drake MacFarlane, analyst at MScience.
The popularity of the Hoka shoes and the success of the company’s Ugg boots and sandals has helped it post double-digit revenue growth for nearly seven quarters.
The company now expects annual net sales to increase about 15% to $4.9 billion, compared with its prior expectation of about 12% growth to $4.8 billion. Analysts estimated an increase of 14.9% to $4.93 billion.
Deckers expects annual earnings per share of $5.75 to $5.80, compared with its prior forecast of $5.15 to $5.25.
Amazon.com is increasing its advertising on billionaire Elon Musk’s social media platform X, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The major shift comes after the e-commerce giant withdrew much of its advertising from the platform more than a year ago due to concerns over hate speech.
In 2023, Apple also pulled all of its advertising from X and has recently been in discussions about testing ads on the platform, the report said.
Several ad agencies, tech and media companies had also suspended advertising on X following Musk’s endorsement of an antisemitic post that falsely accused members of the Jewish community of inciting hatred against white people.
Monthly U.S. ad revenue at social media platform X has declined by at least 55% year-over-year each month since Musk bought the company, formerly known as Twitter, in October 2022. He had acknowledged that an extended boycott by advertisers could bankrupt X.
Musk has become one of the most influential figures following President Donald Trump‘s re-election. He now leads the Department of Government Efficiency, which aims to cut $2 trillion in government spending.
Spanish fashion and fragrance company Puig reported a 14.3% rise in fourth-quarter sales on Thursday, beating analyst expectations for the key holiday period.
The Barcelona-based company behind perfume brands Rabanne, Carolina Herrera and Jean Paul Gaultier said net sales for the three months to Dec. 31 were 1.36 billion euros ($1.42 billion), above the 1.30 billion euro average forecast from analysts polled by LSEG.
Puig, which generates most of its revenue from fragrance sales, is heavily reliant on the holiday season, with analysts estimating that nearly half of its prestige perfumes are sold in the quarter that includes Black Friday and Christmas.
The company, which also owns luxury skincare and make-up brands Byredo and Charlotte Tilbury, said full-year sales reached 4.79 billion euros ($4.99 billion), up 11% from 2023, surpassing its goal of increasing sales faster than the 6-7% forecast for the global premium beauty market.
The average of analyst estimates was for sales of 4.72 billion euros in 2024, given that it is less exposed to sluggish demand in China and that more than half of Puig’s revenue comes from Europe, the Middle East and Africa while 18% comes from the United States.
The 2024 performance of larger rivals such as Estee Lauder and L’Oreal was hampered by muted demand from China, where a property crisis and high youth unemployment have curbed consumer spending.
Puig said sales in its core fragrance and fashion business grew by 21% in the holiday quarter.
Sales in the make-up division fell 7.2%, with its Charlotte Tilbury brand affected by a voluntary withdrawal of select batches of Airbrush Flawless Setting Spray in December over what Puig described as “an isolated quality issue in a limited number of batches” detected during routine product testing.