Zalando posted better-than-expected sales in 2021 but released a disappointed guidance for 2022, which prompted the company’s share price to drop nearly 10 percent on the day.
In the full year ended Dec. 31, the German online fashion retailer posted a 29.7 percent increase in revenues to €10.35 billion, compared with a guidance of a 29 percent increase to €10.3 billion. The company achieved an adjusted Ebit of €468.4 million, corresponding to a margin of 4.5 percent, against €420.8 million, or a 5.3 percent margin, in 2020.
In 2021, the gross merchandise volume (GMV) rose by 34.1 percent to €14.3 billion. “We are in a strong position to achieve our GMV goal of more than €30 billion by 2025,” the co-CEO Robert Gentz said in a statement.
Zalando aims to “outperform the European online fashion segment in a volatile market environment” in 2022 but expects to grow at a slower pace than last year. For 2022, the company forecast a GMV between €16.6 billion and 17.6 billion, representing an increase between 16 and 23 percent. Revenues are expected to reach €11.6 billion-12.3 billion, up by 12-19 percent. The adjusted operating profit is forecast at between €430 million and €510 million. Zalando added that the outlook did not take into account potential negative effects from the war in Ukraine.
Credit Suisse described the guidance as “modest.” It noted that the range of the 2022 guidance is understandably broad. Still, it was unclear whether the reason was due to a cautious view of the macroeconomic situation or related to its business.
