Acushnet is Dominating On and Off the Course
Acushnet reported a 33% increase in sales for 2021, and equipment is off to a hot start on Pro Tours.
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Hey Golfers -
Acushnet announced full-year 2021 and fourth-quarter financial results last week; it was a positive report for the golf industry.
As a refresher, the 112-year-old company based in Massachusetts has multiple brands in its portfolio.
Titleist
FootJoy
Vokey Design
Scotty Cameron
Pinnacle
KJUS
Before we break down the financial results, let’s look at what Acushnet had to say about the golf industry as a whole. Spoiler alert - it’s very encouraging.
Here is what CEO David Maher said about the current state of the golf industry.
First and foremost, we are encouraged by the game's momentum with U.S. rounds up 5% in 2021 and up 20% or almost 90 million rounds versus 2019. This increase over the past two years was aided by play from some 800,000 new golfers with juniors and women the fastest-growing segments as reported by the National Golf Foundation.
New golfers totaling 800,000 over the last two years is significant. Even better is juniors and women growing the fastest - this is important for sustaining the game.
Acushnet trades under the symbol $GOLF on the New York Stock Exchange. Here is their stock price in March since 2019.
2019 - $23.94
2020 - $25.92
2021 - $40.98
2022 - $43.13
Below are quick bullet points on the full-year financials.
$2.147 billion in sales - up 33% vs. 2020
$178.9 million in net income - up 86% vs. 2020
$328.3 million in Adjusted EBITDA - up 40% vs. 2020
For those of you curious about cash position, Acushnet increased its cash and cash equivalents by $130 million in 2021. They ended 2020 with $151 million in cash, and ended 2021 with $281 million in cash.
Acushnet had tremendous revenue increases in all four business segments. FootJoy golf wear led the way with a 39% increase in revenue vs. 2020. Acushnet touched on FootJoy’s growth during the earnings call; they stated FootJoy’s brand is healthy and vibrant. In the United States, shoe sales were up over 50%, an incredible number for an established brand. Here is a look at full-year net sales by segment in 2021.
Acushnet breaks its financial results into five geographic regions.
United States
EMEA
Japan
Korea
Rest of World
The United States led the way with over 50% of its 2021 sales of $2.147 billion. What continues to impress me is the strength of sales in Korea. It makes up 15% of the total revenue of Acushnet, with a population of 51 million people, or about 1/7th of the population of the United States.
Acushnet has had a solid start to the year on the PGA, LPGA, and DP World Tour’s, racking up wins and market share.
Titleist Golf Ball usage is 75% on worldwide tours
Titleist Golf Ball has won 10 of the last 12 PGA Tour events
Titleist Golf Ball has won every LPGA Tour event in 2022
Scotty Cameron putters have won 50% of PGA Tour events in 2022
Scotty Cameron putters have won on LPGA and DP World Tours this year
A sign of good news. During Acushnet’s last earnings call in November, CEO David Maher mentioned ‘Supply Chain’ six times during his opening statement. While the supply chain is still tight for Acushnet, it appears it will be easing a bit in the back half of 2022. Here is what we should be concerned about for 2022.
Raw material for golf balls is limiting manufacturing capacity
Port issues in the United States are delaying shoe shipments
Steel shaft constraints
Looking ahead to 2022 - Acushnet expects sales to be between $2.175 - $2.25 billion, or sales growth of 2.7% - 5%.
Acushnet’s solid performance in 2021 paired with Callaway’s positive year is excellent news for the golf industry. When these companies are winning, we are all winning.
Have yourself a great Monday. Talk to you next week!
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Great Article. I wait every week for this awesome read!!