Hugo Boss shares tank as APAC sales miss forecasts

Shares in Hugo Boss tanked on Thursday despite first-quarter results beating forecasts, as the German fashion group reported falling sales in the key market of China.

Sales totalled €1.014bn in the first three months of the year, up 5% on the same period in 2023, and ahead of the €1.005bn consensus forecast.

The company said that both brands – BOSS and HUGO – all regions and all channels contributed to sales growth in the quarter.

Currency-adjusted growth in the EMEA and Americas regions of 5% and 11% beat estimates of 4% and 10%, respectively, according to analysts at Jefferies.

However, a 4% improvement in Asia Pacific missed the mark with analysts expecting 5.5% growth, as sales in China remained below last year's levels which the company said reflected "overall muted local demand".

The stock was down 8% at €46.50 by 1234 in Frankfurt.

Nevertheless, on a group level, earnings before interest and tax grew 6% to €69m, beating the €65m consensus estimate.

"I am pleased that we delivered further sales and earnings improvements also in the first quarter of 2024," said chief executive Daniel Grieder.

"By leveraging our strong business platform, we remain equally committed to realising further efficiencies. All of this will enable us to continue our profitable growth trajectory also in 2024."

For the full year, the company expects to reports sales growth of between 3% and 6% from last year's €4.2bn, with EBIT projected to increase between 5% and 15% from €410m.