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Puma reports 0.1% increase in Q1 sales

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Puma maintains 2025 outlook, excluding tariffs impact

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Q1 gross profit margin declines to 47% year-on-year

(Adds details throughout, share price in paragraph 3)

By Helen Reid

LONDON, May 8 (Reuters) - German sportswear brand Puma

reported flat first-quarter sales and a decline in its

profit margin on Thursday, and maintained its 2025 outlook,

excluding any impact from U.S. tariffs.

Puma replaced its CEO last month after a string of profit

warnings as the company struggled to drive consistent sales

growth, with its new shoes ranges like the Speedcat not doing as

well as the company had expected.

Shares were up around 2% in early trading on Thursday.

Puma's stock is down 47% since the start of the year, as missed

sales and profit expectations weigh.

First-quarter sales of 2.08 billion euros ($2.35 billion)

were slightly better than analysts' average forecast of 2.04

billion euros, and up 0.1% from the first quarter of last year.

Weaker sales to retailers in the U.S. and China drove Puma's

wholesale business - its main sales driver - down by 3.6%, but

stronger online sales helped its direct-to-consumer business

grow 12% to 546.5 million euros.

Puma has named former Adidas sales chief Arthur

Hoeld as its new CEO to turn performance around. The board is

leading the company until Hoeld takes over on July 1.

The company's gross profit margin for the first quarter

declined by 0.6 percentage points to 47%.

Puma stuck to its 2025 outlook for "low-to mid-single-digit"

sales growth, but said that excludes any impact from U.S.

tariffs.

It has already reduced its U.S. imports from China, which

are subject to tariffs of 145%, Chief Financial Officer Markus

Neubrand said.

Like its competitors Adidas and Nike ( NKE ), Puma would be

hit hard if U.S. President Donald Trump reinstates steep tariffs

on Southeast Asia, currently paused until July.

Puma buys 28% of its products from factories in China, with

Vietnam a close second at 26%, and Cambodia producing 16%.

It plans to cut 500 corporate positions globally by the end

of the second quarter as part of a cost-cutting drive, Neubrand

said in March.

($1 = 0.8846 euros)