Thule Group AB (publ)

Q2 sales were just over SEK 3.4 billion, up 2.5% organically, with H1 organic growth at 3.1%. Gross margin increased to 47.3%, up 1 percentage point year over year, and adjusted EBIT margin rose to 22.8%, up 1.2 percentage points versus last year; adjusted EBIT was SEK 779 million. Net income and EPS were up 4.7% in the quarter and 6.6% in the first half. Cash flow from operations was SEK 824 million, with net debt down SEK 100 million and leverage at 1.9x. For Q3, management expects the impact of raw material inflation to be offset by an around 2.5% price increase centered around August and about USD 5 million/SEK 50 million of tariff refunds, which they said should be net positive in the quarter; no formal sales or profit guidance was given.

Mattias Ankarberg said the quarter confirmed that Thule’s strategy of building champion categories and driving efficiency is working, even in a cautious market. He emphasized strong product innovation, especially in bike carriers, dog transportation, and connected/safety-oriented products, and said the company is expanding new and upgraded launches through the second half. His tone was confident but realistic: Europe is performing well, North America remains tough, and the company is managing through raw material inflation with pricing and supply-chain actions.

Toby Lawton said gross margin improvement came mainly from favorable price/mix, including stronger D2C and performance phone mounts, plus efficiency gains, though North America tariffs still created about SEK 20 million of negative FX/tariff-related impact in the quarter. SG&A was slightly lower at SEK 838 million versus SEK 841 million last year and down 3.9% in H1, reflecting ongoing cost discipline and a focus on champion-category R&D; he said Thule intends to spend at least 4% of sales on development for those categories while reducing total spend slightly. Cash flow from operations was SEK 824 million, with SEK 70 million of CapEx, SEK 114 million for curli, and SEK 448 million of dividends; despite that, net debt fell SEK 100 million and leverage improved to 1.9x.

Analysts focused on North America weakness, margin sustainability, tariffs, and whether Q2 sell-through improvements were translating into replenishment orders. Management said North American sell-through and D2C were improving, but retailers were reducing inventory and had not yet fully reordered, so the benefit was not yet showing up in reported organic growth. On margins, management explained that a 2.5% price increase from August is intended to offset raw-material inflation, while about USD 5 million in tariff refunds expected in Q3 should make the quarter net positive on those items. They also said the Belgium office closure affects about 10 people and is unrelated to RV, and that no additional office closures are currently planned.