Italy's FILA's 2024 profit slumps despite lower financial expenses

EBIT also fell by 18.6 per cent to €63.87 million. Notably, net financial expense dropped sharply by 67.2 per cent, contributing to a pre-tax profit of €106.81 million—a 49 per cent decline YoY. After accounting for income taxes of €25.96 million.

The group's net profit stood at €81.8 million (~$88.04 million), down 52.1 per cent from the previous year, however, the adjusted group net profit increased by €10.0 million to €40.9 million. This result stemmed mainly from lower financial expenses, which fell to €25.9 million in 2024 from €37.5 million in 2023, due to the lower debt.

In 2024, the group's revenue performance varied across regions. In North America, revenue totalled €298.9 million, contracting by 6.9 per cent, mainly due to the rollout of the SAP Extended Warehouse Management (EWM) module—an advanced system used to efficiently manage complex warehouse operations—in March, as well as macroeconomic uncertainties in the final quarter.

In Europe, revenue rose slightly by 0.9 per cent to €215.9 million, supported by new commercial and marketing initiatives and a favourable comparison with 2023, which was marked by significant destocking. Central and South America saw revenue grew by 3.6 per cent to €81.0 million, although macroeconomic challenges affected the region's performance in the final quarter, FILA Group said in a press release.

For full year 2025, FILA projects low-to mid-single-digit revenue growth and mid-single-digit adjusted EBITDA growth, assuming constant currency and tariffs. The company anticipates free cash flow to equity between €40 million and €50 million, excluding dividends from DOMS. The group plans to mitigate potential tariff impacts through its global production facilities and continues organisational efficiency initiatives to reduce costs and optimise operations.

“2024 allows us to close a very satisfying year in terms of EBITDA and net profit growth, as well as strong cash generation and a significant reduction in debt. Revenue saw a return to growth in Europe and continues to develop in Central and South America; however, they were affected by a one-off impact from SAP EWM in North America in the first quarter, macroeconomic uncertainties in key geographies during the latter part of the year, as well as negative exchange rate effects in South America,” said Massimo Candela, chief executive officer (CEO) of FILA. “We achieved our 2024 guidance targets in terms of EBITDA growth, while we significantly exceeded them in terms of EBITDA margin (at 19.3 per cent), and in terms of cash generation, with free cash flow to equity at €67.7 million. These results, together with the sale of 4.57 per cent of shares in DOMS, allowed us to significantly reduce the net bank debt to €124.5 million, bringing the leverage ratio to a very comfortable 1.1x.”

ALCHEMPro News Desk (SG)