Swiss-based sportswear firm On Holdings reported fourth-quarter financial results Tuesday morning that beat analyst expectations for both revenue and earnings. The stock finished Tuesday’s trading at $50.66 a share, up 5.87% on the day.
Revenue for the three months was CHF 607 million ($679 million, based on current exchange rates), up 36% versus the prior-year quarter. For the full year, net sales hit CHF 2.32 billion ($2.6 billion) with a forecast to increase “at least” 27% in 2025, translating to $3.3 billion at current rates. Fourth-quarter revenue topped Wall Street forecasts by 2%, and earnings per share of CHF 0.27 crushed expectations of CHF 0.18.
Direct-to-consumer revenue increased 43% for the quarter, and e-commerce and the brand’s own stores were responsible for roughly half of sales—wholesale revenue grew 29%. Asia-Pacific had the biggest revenue gain in the quarter of 118% to $83 million. Americas is On’s biggest region at $431 million and had growth of 28%.
On the balance sheet, cash and cash equivalents soared 87% versus the prior year to top $1 billion for the first time as of Dec. 31.
William Blair analyst Dylan Carden reiterated the firm’s On investment thesis in a note published after the earnings results. “It has the best capacity among newer athletic footwear entrants to iterate on the product, with new launches in its core running franchise continuing to support a broader halo of category extensions, including apparel, tennis, training, and hiking,” Carden wrote. He said the biggest risk is the brand’s “internal capacity to reinvent itself” but that issue “clearly is not showing up in the numbers at present.”
On’s stock has been on a roller coaster ride since its initial public offering in September 2021. It went public at $24 and topped $50 two months later before a year-long descent to $16 in October 2022. Shares rebounded by 300% to reach a new high of $64 last month before a recent slide back to $50.
Last month, Goldman Sachs downgraded On from “buy” to “neutral” over concerns about a more competitive landscape and the 227% gain in the stock since November 2022. “On’s competitors are increasingly focusing on winning back market share in running, potentially leading to a more competitive backdrop going forward,” Richard Edwards, Goldman analyst, wrote in a research note.
Goldman Sachs maintained its price target of $57.
One high-profile investor whose On stake value is up is Roger Federer. The Swiss-born, 20-time Grand Slam tennis champion invested in 2019—well before the IPO—as part of an endorsement agreement following his split from Nike after two decades. On introduced its first tennis shoe, The Roger Pro, in 2021.
(This story has been updated in the first paragraph with the day’s closing share price.)
