Wolverine Worldwide reported today a doubling in its quarterly revenues to $645.9 million for the period ended on March 31 thanks to its acquisition last October of Sperry Top-Sider, Saucony, Stride Rite and Keds. On a pro forma basis, assuming that it owned them already at the beginning of 2012, its revenues would have increased by 8.2 percent.
The group's gross margin declined by about 0.4 percentage points to 40.6 percent. The newly acquired brands contributed to boost the group's operating income, but overall, the operating margin declined to 7.9 percent from 11.4 percent a year ago. Net profits were down slightly to $29.8 million from $31.2 million, but excluding the expenses related to acquisitions, they grew by 26.6 percent.
Sperry, Merrell and Saucony enjoyed excellent performance in the quarter. The group continued to meet challenging conditions in Europe, but it did well in other international markets and the U.S. For the full 2013 financial year, sales are expected to grow by between 6 and 9 percent. More on Wolverine later and in The Compass and Shoe Intelligence.
