Home to icon sporting goods brands like Wilson, Salomon, Atomic and Louisville Slugger, Amer Sports has jumped onto the IBD Leaderboard watchlist. An explosive rebound in earnings growth continues to drive shares higher, but Amer Sports stock still needs to navigate this stormy market as the 2024 initial public offering battles resistance and takes aim at a breakout.
Founded in 1950 in Helsinki, Amer Sports has evolved into a global sports equipment powerhouse. More than 70,000 National Football League touchdowns have been scored with Wilson footballs. Further, 644 Grand Slam titles have been won using Wilson tennis rackets. And American Mikaela Shiffrin has 100 World Cup wins on Atomic skis.
Its brands range from Salomon, Atomic, Wilson, Peak Performance and more. Amer Sports' products are sold in more than 100 countries. Offerings include apparel, footwear, equipment, protective gear and accessories.
Previously trading on the Helsinki and London stock exchanges, China-based Anta Sports led a consortium of investors to take Amer Sports private in 2019. In February, Amer Sports had its IPO and now trades under the AS stock symbol.
Amer Sports Drives 383% Growth — With A Caveat
After a slowdown for the last three quarters of 2023, Amer Sports rebounded with four quarters of triple-digit earnings growth in 2024. Three of those gains, however, are based on comparisons to prior-year quarters that showed a loss.
Nonetheless, that strong growth — including a 383% rise to 17 cents per share in the fourth quarter — shows a powerful turnaround.
Sales growth has held solid and steady, with gains ranging from 11% to 36% over the last eight quarters. In the fourth quarter, Amer Sports generated revenue of over $1.63 billion, a 23% year-over-year rise.
In a sign of demand, the stock has seen three quarters of rising fund ownership.
Salomon Parent Faces Stormy Breakout
While the Nasdaq popped Monday to kick off the new week, icy market conditions remain. The tech-heavy Nasdaq briefly bounced back above its 200-day moving average earlier this month. But now, it remains trapped below that benchmark.
Further, Amer Sports is facing some tests of its own. Its shares continue to work on a 34 buy point in a second-stage consolidation. That setup has formed after Amer Sports bolted past an 18.23 entry in its first post-IPO base in October. From there, the stock spiked nearly 87% to notch a record high before retreating.
While the current market correction in indexes is certainly a contributing factor, the pullback in shares of Amer Sports after such a big run is not unusual.
Now, the stock continues to battle resistance at its 50-day moving average, but stands poised to retake that benchmark.
To show rising technical strength, investors should see if the 21-day exponential moving average can climb back above the 50-day line.
Follow Matthew Galgani on X (formerly Twitter) at @IBD_MGalgani.
