> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.bullished.co/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Hayward's CFO Says Fourth-Quarter Guide Assumes Last Year's Full-Price Late Orders Won't Return - URL: https://www.bullished.co/haywards-cfo-says-fourth-quarter-guide-assumes-last-years-full-price-late-orders-wont-8a023514/ - Published: 2026-10-28T14:29:32.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-28T14:29:32.000Z - Description: The pool-equipment maker's outlook implies fourth-quarter sales flat to up 3%, with volume the swing factor. - Author: Matteo Parrino - Tags: Earnings, HAYW, Industry: Not classified [Hayward Holdings](https://www.bullished.co/tag/hayw/), which makes pool equipment, outdoor living products and industrial flow control products, [raised its full-year outlook](https://seekingalpha.com/news/4658793-hayward-holdings-beats-top-line-and-bottom-line-estimates-raises-fy26-outlook?ref=bullished.co) while assuming last year's unusually strong late-season orders will not repeat, CFO Eifion Jones told analysts on the company's third-quarter earnings call. ## Flat to up 3% in the fourth quarter Jones said the guidance implies fourth-quarter net sales of flat to up 3%, inside the full-year range of about 5% to 6% growth. The range, he said, rests mainly on volume. Pricing stays positive, in his words at a level "amid single digits," but the year-over-year dynamic changes. Last year's in-season orders came "at full price, undiscounted," Jones said. This year's guide assumes heavy participation in the early-buy program, which carries discounts, producing what he called a lower single-digit price dynamic. He added that the company stays cautious on Europe and the rest of the world given geopolitical uncertainty. A Wolfe Research analyst had pressed the point, noting North American pricing has run mid-to-high single digits this year and asking why a 5% to 6% full-year guide implied a squeeze in the fourth quarter. ## Raised outlook, margin held Hayward now expects 2026 net sales growth of about 5% to 6%, up from about 5%. Adjusted diluted earnings per share are guided to 86 cents to 88 cents, up about 12% to 14% from last year, against prior guidance of 84 cents to 87 cents. [Third-quarter net sales rose](https://seekingalpha.com/news/4658793-hayward-holdings-beats-top-line-and-bottom-line-estimates-raises-fy26-outlook?ref=bullished.co) 6% to $260 million, and adjusted EPS climbed 29% to 18 cents. Jones said full-year gross margin is still expected at about 48%, in line with last year's record, and that the fourth-quarter shift toward discounted early-buy business is a mix effect, not a structural problem with margin. Management also said the outlook allows for some partners to modestly tighten inventory as they prepare for the coming season. ## Early buy and the buyback CEO Kevin Holleran said North American early-buy orders for the 2027 pool season were ahead of the prior year at the end of the third quarter, with the program set to conclude in the fourth quarter. Some distributors, Canada among them, were still a couple of weeks from placing orders, he said. Jones said channel partners have a payment incentive: they do not owe for early-buy product until the second quarter of next year. Hayward has spent about $115 million on buybacks this year, leaving $331 million under its $450 million authorization at quarter end. Net leverage held at 1.5 times. Holleran said early buy typically makes up no more than a third of annual purchases, so he called it a good leading indicator but not the make-or-break for 2027. ### Sources - [Hayward Holdings beats top-line and bottom-line estimates; raises FY26 outlook | Seeking Alpha](https://seekingalpha.com/news/4658793-hayward-holdings-beats-top-line-and-bottom-line-estimates-raises-fy26-outlook?ref=bullished.co) — seekingalpha.com - [Q3 Earnings Ahead Could Change The Bull Case For Hayward Holdings Stock](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/q3-earnings-ahead-could-change-091000676.html?ref=bullished.co) — Yahoo Finance - [Hayward Holdings, Inc. (HAYW) Was Down in Q3 2026, but This Fund Remains Confident in Its Investment Thesis](https://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/hayward-holdings-inc-hayw-down-134933866.html?ref=bullished.co) — Yahoo Finance - [Hayward Holdings, Inc. (HAYW) Q3 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/hayward-holdings-inc-hayw-q3-113504051.html?.tsrc=rss&ref=bullished.co) — Yahoo Finance - [Hayward Holdings Inc. : Articles :: Law360](https://www.law360.com/companies/hayward-holdings-inc?article%5Frelated%5Fcontent=1&ref=bullished.co) — law360.com ### More on Hayward Holdings - [Hayward Raises 2026 Outlook As Third-Quarter Net Income Climbs 35% On 6% Sales Growth](https://www.bullished.co/hayward-raises-2026-outlook-as-third-quarter-net-income-climbs-35-on-6-sales-growth-2867b7d9/) - [Hayward Will Pass IEEPA Tariff Refunds To U.S. Customers, Replacing A Planned Fuel Surcharge](https://www.bullished.co/hayward-will-pass-ieepa-tariff-refunds-to-u-s-customers-replacing-a-planned-fuel-surcharge-8d5bfee9/) [All Hayward Holdings (HAYW) coverage →](https://www.bullished.co/tag/hayw/)