The Outdoor Products division of Vista Outdoor, which groups brands such as Bell, Giro, Camelbak, Camp Chef and Bushnell Golf, recorded a 9 percent drop in sales to $132 million in the fourth quarter ended on March 31, largely due to restrictions related to the Covid-19 outbreak. Sales of hydration products declined, but the division benefited from increased demand for bicycle helmets and accessories and outdoor cooking products owing to the coronavirus near the end of the quarter.
The division’s gross margin declined by 2.24 percentage points to $32 million and its operating profit fell by 49 percent to $4 million. Adjusted for the sale of its firearms operations, the group’s quarterly operating profit of $11.1 million was up by 237 percent, however, thanks to a 16 percent gain in its Shooting Sports division.
In addition to a higher level of profitability, the $170 million gained from sale of its firearms business in the second quarter led to a 30 percent increase in net cash for Vista Outdoor. In the fourth quarter, the group’s total sales of $426 million were 17 percent lower than in the year-ago period, but organically they were only off by 8 percent, because of lower sales in hydration and hunting and shooting accessories as well as to a tough comparison because of a large foreign order a year earlier.
For the full financial year, Vista’s sales of Outdoor Products were down by 13 percent to $567 million, but they were only 5 percent lower than in the prior year excluding the eyewear business divested in the second quarter. The division’s gross margin was flat at 26 percent excluding eyewear. Its operating profit of $30 million was 5 percent better without taking the eyewear business into account.
The group reported a net loss of $155.0 million for the year, but it would have broken even without impairment charges of $155.6 million added to the books. In the prior year, impairment charges of $456.0 million had contributed to a net loss of $648.4 million.
