Peloton Sinks 30% on Another Quarter of Sales Decline

Peloton (PTON:US) shares dropped nearly 30% on Wednesday after the fitness company reported a wider-than-expected loss for its fourth fiscal quarter.

Connected fitness revenue for the quarter reached $220.4 million, ahead of the average analyst estimate of $210.2 million. The company also reported a loss per share of $0.68. Sales fell to $642.1 million, down from $678.7 million a year earlier.

Peloton has also provided its revenue projection for the first fiscal quarter, indicating a range of $580 million to $600 million. This estimate fell well short of the consensus estimate of $647.8 million. 

The company has also announced its plan to resume pre-sales of the popular Tread+ in the U.S. during the holiday season. The first shipments are projected to occur approximately 6 weeks after the start of pre-sales. 

Initial shipments will be delivered from the existing inventory of roughly 10,000 units. 

“Peloton’s FYQ4 performance is a reminder we operate a seasonal business. We ended Q4 with 4% Y/Y Connected Fitness (CF) subscription growth, but subscribers declined by 29 thousand on a Q/Q basis due to the seasonal slowdown in hardware sales and higher than anticipated CF subscription churn,” Barry McCarthy, CEO & President, said in a shareholder letter. 

“The slowdown exceeded our expectations through May and through the first three weeks of June as consumer spending shifted toward travel and experiences. Then eight weeks ago the trend reversed itself, and we began to see a reacceleration in hardware sales.”

Congressman Jim Banks reported the purchase of some PTON shares in early June.