STOCKHOLM (BRAIN) — Despite what it called a “challenging” North America market and decreased Sport & Cargo Carrier demand, Thule Group's net sales increased slightly year-over-year in the second quarter.
Overall net sales increased 0.5% to SEK 3,421 million ($352.9 million), compared with SEK 3,403 million at the same time last year. For Region North America, net sales were down 7.2% at SEK 764 million, with organic growth listed at minus-2.3%.
According to Thule President and CEO Mattias Ankarberg, the North America market is suffering from “cautious aftermarket retailers and consumers. Growth on thule.com was strong, and sales of Thule products also increased among our largest aftermarket retailers. However, their focus on reducing inventory levels had a negative impact on Thule’s sales during the quarter.”
The Sport & Cargo Carriers product line was the only category that reported a net sales decrease (1.7%) year-over-year. During the second quarter, Thule launched the Epos ParkSecure, an upgrade to its top-of-the-line bike carrier that’s now equipped with a parking sensor. Sport & Cargo Carriers accounted for 54% of total sales during the quarter.
Quarterly net income increased 4.7%, from SEK 512 million to SEK 537 million. Earnings per share increased by the same percentage from SEK 4.75 to SEK 4.98.
Thule's corporate headquarters is in Stockholm. Its stock is traded on OTCMKTS under the THULE symbol. Thule stock quote is at Marketwatch.com.
