On Holding AG (ONON) slips despite deep earnings beat
May 13, 202611 min read
Key Takeaway
On Holding AG (ONON) delivered a strong earnings beat, topping estimates on both EPS and revenue while crossing CHF 800 million in quarterly sales for the first time. The stock still slipped after the report, but the results and guidance point to durable demand, expanding margins, and continued premium brand momentum for investors.
On Holding AG (ONON) delivered a clean earnings beat for the quarter, topping Wall Street on both EPS and revenue as sales crossed the CHF 800M mark for the first time. Even so, the stock slips 0.62% to $33.83 after the report, a reminder that strong numbers and strong price action do not always travel together in the short run.
Key Takeaways
ONON earnings came in ahead of estimates, with EPS of 0.4636 vs. 0.35 expected and revenue of $1.04B vs. $1.03B expected.
The standout operating theme was broad demand across regions and categories, with Co-CEO Caspar Coppetti highlighting "well over 50% constant currency growth in apparel globally" and strong growth in the Americas, EMEA, and APAC.
Guidance was a key positive. Post-earnings commentary cited 2026 outlook for at least 23% constant-currency sales growth and adjusted EBITDA margin of 19.5% to 20.0%, which landed above some Street expectations on profitability.
Management leaned hard into premium positioning. Coppetti said the company remains committed to a full-price strategy in an increasingly promotional market, while Martin Hoffmann said gross margin is now expected to approach 65%.
Product innovation remained central to the ONON earnings call narrative, especially LightSpray, which sold out quickly in many channels and represented close to 20% of footwear net sales in the opening week of the new Boston store.
Analyst reaction was mostly constructive. BofA reiterated Buy with a $63 target, Needham reiterated Buy with a $52 target, and UBS remained bullish with an $85 target, though several analysts flagged conservative top-line guidance and FX or tariff pressure.
Financial Performance Breakdown
The headline numbers were solid. On Holding AG posted EPS of 0.4636 against a 0.35 estimate. Revenue reached $1.04B, ahead of the $1.03B consensus. That follows a string of recent beats, including EPS of 0.31 vs. 0.26 on March 3, 2026, and 0.50 vs. 0.3254 on Nov. 12, 2025. The pattern matters. ONON earnings have become less about proving demand exists and more about proving the brand can scale profitably.
The company also entered the quarter with momentum. Quarterly revenue had already climbed from $0.61B in the Dec. 2024 quarter to $0.73B in March 2025, $0.75B in June 2025, $0.79B in Sept. 2025, and $0.74B in Dec. 2025. Against that backdrop, the move to $1.04B marks a clear step up in the revenue base.
Profitability also improved. Post-earnings coverage said adjusted EBITDA margin rose to 21.0% from 16.5% a year earlier. That is a meaningful jump for a premium consumer brand operating in a market that management itself described as increasingly promotional. In plain English, On is still selling a premium story without having to buy growth through discounting.
Segment data reinforces the same point. Shoes remain the engine by a wide margin. For the 2025 fiscal year, shoe revenue reached 2.8044B, up from 2.1996B in 2024. Apparel rose to 169.9M from 101.0M, while accessories increased to 39.6M from 17.7M. Shoes still dominate the mix, but apparel is growing faster and giving the brand another lane for expansion. That matters because apparel can deepen customer engagement and raise the value of the brand beyond a single footwear franchise.
The ONON earnings call put special emphasis on apparel and innovation-led footwear. Coppetti said apparel delivered more than 50% constant-currency growth globally. He also said the Cloudmonster 3 launch outpaced its predecessor across all regions. Meanwhile, LightSpray moved from concept to commercial proof point, with management saying the LightSpray Cloudmonster Hyper sold out quickly across many channels and that the company is selling several hundred pairs a day in direct-to-consumer channels alone.
There were also notable line items in the broader earnings narrative. Net sales reached CHF 831.9M, up 14.5% year over year and 26.4% at constant currency, according to post-earnings coverage. Management framed that as the first time the company crossed CHF 800M in quarterly sales. That milestone carries weight because it shows On is still expanding at a rate that many larger athletic brands would envy, even as the base gets bigger.
Net sales exceeded CHF 830 million, the first time we have crossed the CHF 800 million mark, growing 26.4% at constant currency. At the same time, On's disciplined focus on premium execution delivered exceptionally strong gross profit and adjusted EBITDA margins, a clear reaffirmation of our premium strategy. — Caspar Coppetti, Co-CEO, ONON earnings call
Historical EPS also adds context. ONON reported quarterly EPS of 0.17 in March 2025, then -0.12 in June 2025, 0.36 in Sept. 2025, 0.21 in Dec. 2025, and now 0.4636. That sequence is not perfectly linear, but the latest result stands out as one of the strongest prints in the recent run. For investors focused on On Holding AG earnings analysis, the key point is simple: the company is growing, and the earnings base is rising with it.
With the outlook we are providing today, we now expect to deliver a gross profit margin approaching 65%. We have achieved this by staying true to who we are, committed to delivering high-quality products rooted in performance and design at full price and with the best consumer experience. — Martin Hoffmann, outgoing CEO and CFO, ONON earnings call
Market Reaction and Analyst Response
The first market reaction was upbeat. Post-earnings coverage said ONON shares rose more than 6% in premarket trading after the company beat on sales and earnings and issued a margin outlook above forecasts. By the latest regular-session close, however, the stock sat at $33.83, down 0.62% on the day. Volume reached 15,835,912 shares, far above the 6,748,943 average. That kind of volume usually signals active repositioning rather than indifference.
The split reaction is not unusual. A stock can rally on the headline beat, then cool off as investors work through guidance, valuation, and the fine print. In ONON's case, analysts broadly stayed constructive, but not blindly so. The common thread was respect for the brand's growth and margin profile, paired with caution around the top-line outlook, FX, and tariffs.
BofA reiterated Buy and kept its $63 price target. The firm noted that ONON's FY26 operating segment growth guide of at least 23% sat below consensus at 26% and below BofA's own 29% forecast. Still, BofA highlighted gross margin guidance of at least 63% as favorable against consensus at 62.5%. In other words, the bank saw a company guiding with caution on growth but confidence on profitability.
Needham also reiterated Buy and kept its $52 target. The firm called On a compelling growth story in 2026, while trimming FY26 and FY27 EPS by 4 to 5 cents due to tariffs and a stronger Swiss franc. That is a useful distinction. Needham did not break the thesis. It adjusted the math around the edges.
UBS remained bullish as well, with an $85 target. Ahead of the print, UBS had pointed to robust consumer momentum and wanted to see strength across the full P&L, not just sales. The quarter delivered enough to keep that bullish stance intact.
Consensus ratings also lean positive. Analyst consensus shows 20 Buy ratings, 5 Hold ratings, and 1 Sell rating, for an overall Buy view. That does not guarantee upside, of course. It does show that the Street still sees ONON earnings as part of a durable growth story rather than a one-quarter pop.
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The ONON earnings call was rich in strategic language, but the most important comments were also the clearest. Caspar Coppetti focused on brand strength, product differentiation, and premium discipline. Martin Hoffmann focused on the numbers that back up that strategy.
In an increasingly promotional market, we are even more committed to our full price strategy. We are reaching new consumers, but we're doing it with quality and discipline. Our results represent this strategy, sustainable premium growth, the kind that builds the brand for years and decades to come. — Caspar Coppetti, Co-CEO, ONON earnings call
That quote matters because it cuts through the usual retail script. Many brands talk about premium positioning. Fewer defend it while the market gets more promotional. Coppetti's message was that On is not chasing volume at the expense of brand equity. That stance helps explain the margin performance and the confidence around gross profit.
Coppetti also tied the quarter to product innovation. He pointed to LightSpray, Cloudmonster 3, and the upcoming Cloudsurfer 3 as evidence that On still sees product as the core growth engine. That is important narrative support for the stock because premium athletic brands rarely keep pricing power for long without fresh product heat.
The LightSpray Cloudmonster Hyper sold out quickly across many of our channels with particularly strong demand in Asia Pacific and in the U.S. In the opening week of our new Boston store, LightSpray represented close to 20% of footwear net sales. We are currently selling several hundred pairs a day in our DTC channels alone. — Caspar Coppetti, Co-CEO, ONON earnings call
On the financial side, Hoffmann's comments were more direct and arguably more important for the market's model. He emphasized how far the company has scaled since the IPO and underlined the margin structure that now separates On from many consumer peers.
Since our IPO, we have more than quadrupled the business from CHF 725 million net sales in 2021 to more than CHF 3 billion this past year, with 15 of the 19 quarterly results as a public company being record quarters. — Martin Hoffmann, outgoing CEO and CFO, ONON earnings call
That comment gives the quarter a broader frame. This was not just a beat. It was another data point in a longer compounding story. For On Holding AG earnings analysis, that distinction matters because premium multiples usually depend on repeatability, not isolated upside.
Analyst Q&A Highlights
The transcript excerpt provided does not include the full analyst Q&A exchange, so the most revealing points come from the issues analysts raised in post-earnings notes and the topics management addressed in prepared remarks. Even from that narrower set, three pressure points stood out: guidance conservatism, margin durability, and the real commercial value of LightSpray.
First, analysts pushed on whether the sales outlook was too conservative relative to current momentum. BofA kept a Buy rating and a $63 target, but noted that ONON's FY26 growth guide of at least 23% sat below both consensus at 26% and BofA's own 29% estimate. Management's answer, in effect, was embedded in its commentary: stay disciplined, protect full-price selling, and avoid overpromising in a volatile FX and tariff backdrop. That is not flashy, but public companies rarely get rewarded for heroic guidance that later unravels.
ONON's FY26 operating segment growth guide of at least 23% was below consensus at 26% and our 29% estimate, but gross margin guidance of at least 63% compares favorably with consensus at 62.5%. — BofA analyst commentary
Second, analysts focused on margin breadth. UBS had signaled before the print that the market wanted strength across the full P&L. The company delivered that with adjusted EBITDA margin of 21.0%, up from 16.5% a year earlier, and with a 2026 adjusted EBITDA margin outlook of 19.5% to 20.0% in post-earnings coverage. Hoffmann's remarks defended that profile by tying it directly to full-price execution and premium brand discipline.
Third, LightSpray drew attention because it sits at the intersection of innovation story and commercial reality. It is easy for a new technology platform to sound exciting on a conference call. It is harder to prove people are buying it. Management answered that with concrete demand markers: quick sellouts, several hundred pairs a day in DTC, and near-20% of footwear net sales in the opening week of the Boston store. Those are still early numbers, but they move LightSpray out of the concept bucket and into the revenue conversation.
The firm said ONON remains a compelling growth story in 2026, but tariffs and the stronger Swiss franc would pressure 2026 revenue and led it to cut FY26 and FY27 EPS by 4 to 5 cents each. Even so, those changes do not derail the bullish thesis. — Needham analyst commentary
The broader takeaway from the ONON earnings call and the analyst response is that the debate has matured. Analysts are no longer asking whether the brand has momentum. They are testing how durable that momentum is when layered against FX, tariffs, leadership transition, and a premium valuation. This quarter gave management credible answers on each front, even if the stock's day-one reaction stayed mixed.
Bottom Line
On Holding AG earnings delivered what growth investors want to see: a beat on EPS, a beat on revenue, strong margin expansion, and evidence that product innovation is still driving demand. The stock slips despite that performance, but the underlying report kept the core ONON thesis intact: premium growth, expanding profitability, and a brand that is still taking share without leaning on discounts.
+Did On Holding AG (ONON) beat earnings this quarter?
Yes. On Holding reported EPS of 0.4636 versus 0.35 expected and revenue of $1.04 billion versus $1.03 billion expected. The company also said quarterly net sales crossed CHF 830 million, the first time it has surpassed the CHF 800 million mark.
+Why did ONON stock fall after a strong earnings report?
ONON shares slipped 0.62% to $33.83 despite the beat, showing that strong fundamentals do not always translate into immediate price gains. Investors appeared to focus on conservative top-line guidance, FX and tariff pressure, and the market's short-term reaction rather than the headline beat.
+What did On Holding guide for 2026 after earnings?
Management pointed to at least 23% constant-currency sales growth for 2026. The company also guided for an adjusted EBITDA margin of 19.5% to 20.0%, which was viewed as supportive of profitability expectations.
+What were the main growth drivers in On Holding's earnings call?
Management highlighted broad demand across regions and categories, with especially strong growth in apparel, the Americas, EMEA, and APAC. Product innovation also mattered, as LightSpray sold out quickly in many channels and Cloudmonster 3 outperformed its predecessor across regions.
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