SharkNinja Guides Fourth-Quarter Profit Growth To About 9% As It Spends Tariff Refund
The CFO says reinvestment of the refund will be contained in the fourth quarter, even as the company raised its full-year outlook.
SharkNinja will hold fourth-quarter adjusted EBITDA growth to about 9% at the high end of its new guidance, because it plans to pour part of a tariff refund into spending aimed at 2027 and beyond, CFO Adam Quigley said on the company's earnings call Wednesday. The cost comes despite a raised full-year outlook.
A fourth-quarter squeeze
Quigley said the high end of the updated outlook implies fourth-quarter net sales growth of about 17%, adjusted gross margin down about 100 basis points (one percentage point) and adjusted EBITDA growth of about 9%. He called the margin and profit drag "simply the timing" of certain refund reinvestments, all expected to be contained in the fourth quarter.
For the full year, the company now expects net sales growth of 18% to 19%, up from 16% to 17%, and adjusted earnings of $6.65 to $6.75 a share, up from $6.45 to $6.55. Adjusted EBITDA is guided to $1.38 billion to $1.391 billion, growth of 21.5% to 22.5%. For the second half, the high end implies sales up roughly 19% and adjusted EBITDA up roughly 25%.
The refund and where it goes
SharkNinja, which designs Shark and Ninja household appliances and sells them through retailers, recognized about $134 million of tariff refund benefit tied to fiscal 2026 duties in the third quarter, Quigley said. Last quarter it had expected about $125 million, of which about $30 million would flow through to adjusted EBITDA, leaving a reinvestment opportunity it sized at about $95 million.
Some of the planned spending spread across two quarters because of timing, and Quigley said he sees multiple opportunities in the fourth quarter to finish it. The targets include retail activation, media, technology and AI, and faster research and development. Extra media is aimed at recently converted direct markets in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, where Quigley said such spending historically lifts awareness and sales.
Asked by a Goldman Sachs analyst about underlying margins, Quigley said third-quarter gross margin excluding the refund would have been down around 100 basis points. He called that a "choice": once the refund was visible, the company delayed price increases.
"On offense" for 2027 and 2028
CEO Mark Barrocas said the moment calls "to be on offense, to widen our moat by investing for the benefit of future years," with payoffs expected in 2027 and 2028. He said the biggest AI investments target media and promotional spending, which together exceed $1.5 billion a year.
Third-quarter net sales rose 21.2% to $1.98 billion, and adjusted EPS was $2.34 versus $1.50 a year earlier. Adjusted gross margin rose 560 basis points to 55.9%, helped by refund recognition, and adjusted EBITDA grew about 46%.
Barrocas said Spain and Italy were standouts in the quarter and that the company is eager for its first holiday season as a direct operator there. He said 50% of its product in those countries this holiday will be available only on its direct site, social commerce and Amazon.
Quigley said the company's main goal for 2027 remains growing adjusted EBIT dollars faster than net sales dollars.
Sources
- SharkNinja, Inc. (SN) Tops Q3 Earnings and Revenue Estimates — Yahoo Finance
- SharkNinja rises after Q3 earnings beat, raises full-year outlook (SN:NYSE) | Seeking Alpha — seekingalpha.com
- SharkNinja Stock Gets Q3 Earnings Boost | Investor's Business Daily — investors.com
- SharkNinja Reports Third Quarter 2026 Results – Company Announcement - FT.com — Financial Times
- How Analyst Backing And Earnings Hopes Will Impact SharkNinja Stock (SN) — Yahoo Finance
