Despite continued negative market developments in the Nordic sports and outdoor markets, the Group’s results are benefiting from a cost reduction programme.
In reporting Q4 and FY24 results, XXL Asa said an expected consumer recovery last year did not materialize with a market recovery now forecast for later in 2025.
Snow-less winter made negative impact
Muted winter conditions negatively impacted Q4 results. Revenues contracted by 1.8 percent to 2,012 million Norwegian kroner (€173.2m) from NOK 2,049 million. The Ebit loss widened to NOK 841 million (-€72.4m) from negative 767 million as the net loss came in at NOK 965 million (-€83.1m). Gross margin did improve by 220 basis points to 35.7 percent from 33.5 percent.
| XXL - Key figures | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 2023 | Change | |
| Q4 (NOK million) | |||
| Operating revenue | 2,012 | 2,049 | -1.8% |
| Gross profit | 719 | 687 | 4.7% |
| Ebitda | 18 | -13 | – |
| Ebit | -841 | -767 | 9.6% |
| Impairment losses | 670 | 576 | 16.3% |
| Net income | -965 | -979 | -1.4% |
| Basic EPS | -39.15 | -58.84 | 33.5% |
| FY (NOK million) | |||
| Operating revenue | 7,183 | 7,961 | -9.8% |
| Gross profit | 2,580 | 2,509 | 2.8% |
| Ebitda | 74 | -80 | – |
| Ebit | -1,371 | -1,409 | 2.7% |
| Impairment losses | 670 | 576 | 16.3% |
| Net income | -1,717 | -1,590 | -8.0% |
| Basic EPS | -77.70 | -193.14 | 59.8% |
| Source: XXL | |||
Q4 results by region showed a 1.8 percent revenue decline in Norway to NOK 1,048 million (€90.2m) but 120-basis-point growth in Ebitda margin to 13.7 percent as gross margin grew by 70 basis points to 36.7 percent. In Sweden, Q4 sales expanded by 3.7 percent year-over-year to NOK 627 million (€54.0m) as the 30-store market swung to a positive Ebitda margin of 8.6 percent against a -2.0 percent. In Finland, Q4 revenues dipped by 10.6 percent year-over-year to NOK 337 million (€29.0m) and Ebitda for the 16-store region slipped by 26 percent to NOK 14 million (€1.2m).
| XXL - Operating revenue | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 2023 | Change | |
| Q4 (NOK million) | |||
| Norway | 1,048 | 1,068 | -1.9% |
| Sweden | 627 | 604 | 3.8% |
| Finland | 337 | 377 | -10.6% |
| FY (NOK million) | |||
| Norway | 3,643 | 4,049 | -10.0% |
| Sweden | 2,258 | 2,387 | -5.4% |
| Finland | 1,281 | 1,525 | -16.0% |
| Source: XXL | |||
Annual gross margin improved
For FY24, XXL Asa suffered a 13.1 percent drop in annual revenues to NOK 7,183 million (€618.4m) from NOK 7,961 million. The annual gross margin improved by 240 basis points to 35.9 percent. But the negative Ebit margin widened to -19.1 percent from -17.7 percent. The group’s annual net loss was NOK 1,717 million (-€147.8m) against a loss of NOK 1,590 million. XXL took NOK 670 million in impairment losses for the 12 months, up from NOK 576 million in FY23.
After the FY end, the group reported that January sales rose 4 percent year-over-year. The company is currently working on a turnaround strategy that includes increasing profitability within its ecommerce business, improving store operations, resetting category strategies, and securing more availability for key products.
