Puma sales fall 5% in Q3 and the sportswear brand cuts its profit outlook

Puma reported third-quarter sales of 1.78 billion euros, down 5 percent on the prior year, and cut its full-year profit outlook for the second time. The figures cover the three months to September 30, midway through what chief executive Arthur Hoeld has called a transition year for the German sportswear brand.

Strip out currency effects and the decline was sharper: 6.3 percent lower than a year ago. The company blamed reset measures begun in the same quarter of 2025, plus a volatile geopolitical climate weighing on consumer sentiment. Hoeld said the performance landed in line with internal expectations.

Operating profit swung from a 16.2 million euro gain a year ago to an 11.4 million euro loss this quarter. Puma attributed the red figure to one-off costs tied to its cost-efficiency programme. Analysts had pencilled in sales of 1.76 billion euros and a roughly 10 million euro EBIT loss, close to what arrived.

Where the damage landed

The home region of Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Puma's biggest, fell hardest. Sales there dropped 12 percent to 801.2 million euros. The Americas slid 2 percent to 580.4 million euros, with North America down more than Latin America, where growth was just barely held onto.

Asia Pacific was the exception, rising 7.5 percent to 394.6 million euros. Momentum came from low-profile Speedcat looks, footwear first designed for 1990s motor racing, and from the Hyrox fitness partnership. China's pace, the company said, was a touch slower amid its new relationship with Anta Sports.

Anta, now China's third-largest sportswear firm, finalised a deal this month to become Puma's largest shareholder, taking a 29.06 percent stake. Anta's preference for selling direct has made distributors and partners in China more cautious since the announcement, Hoeld has previously noted.

Hoeld nonetheless called the tie-up a vote of confidence in Puma's strategy, management and future. Analysts have said Anta's involvement could drive growth next year. In Asia beyond China the reset has not dented demand for the racing-shoe silhouettes and fitness collaborations the brand is pushing.

Product lines and the revised outlook

Footwear fell 3.3 percent to 1.01 billion euros. Puma said muted performance in certain core looks was partly offset by the low-profile designs and new running shoes gaining momentum. Apparel slumped further, down 8.9 percent, while accessories declined 2.1 percent across the quarter.

On the back of those results Puma adjusted its guidance for the year. It still expects sales to keep declining in low to mid single digits, but now forecasts EBIT between minus 80 million and minus 130 million euros. Previously it had guided to between minus 50 million and minus 150 million euros.

Hoeld took charge of a moribund Puma in July 2025, promising to clean up inventory and stop the heavy discounting at mass merchants. That made 2026 a designated year of transformation, with a return to growth targeted for 2027. This quarter shows the cost of that deliberate slowdown still arriving.

When we covered Anta finalising its purchase of Puma's stake, the deal was worth 1.7 billion dollars for a 29.06 percent holding from Groupe Artémis, with Anta seeking a supervisory board seat. This earnings call is the first clear window onto how the partnership is affecting Puma's network in China.

The Anta deal also recasts the ownership picture around a brand sold by Kering years ago as it thinned its portfolio toward personal luxury. Our Kering guide notes the divestiture of Puma as part of that model in action, with Stabæk now guiding the group's more focused list of houses.

Inventory discipline has reshaped the wholesale channel too. Hoeld's promise to stop flooding discount outlets means the reset hits revenue before it can help margin. The EBIT swing from black to red in a quarter shows one-off costs compounding that strategic drag on the top line.

Speedcat and Hyrox remain the growth story worth isolating. Where Puma runs those silhouettes and collaborations, Asia's numbers improved 7.5 percent even as Europe fell double digits. The question is whether the same formula can lift the home market once the reset measures have run their course.

For the rest of the year, Puma has now narrowed and shifted its loss forecast downward, giving investors a narrower band than before. The company has not announced a date for full-year results, nor set a specific target for when the cost-efficiency programme's one-off charges will cease. Return to 2027 growth remains the stated goal.

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Image: Puma