Crown Crafts - Earnings Call - Q4 2025

Executive Summary

• Q4 FY2025 net sales grew 2.9% year over year to $23.2M, but gross margin compressed 490 bps to 18.3% due to higher close-out mix and $324K in tariff costs; GAAP net loss was $(10.8)M ($(1.04) diluted EPS) driven by a non-cash goodwill impairment of $13.8M; adjusted diluted loss per share was $(0.04).
• Fiscal 2025 was essentially flat on sales at $87.3M, with gross margin down 180 bps to 24.4% and adjusted net income of $1.0M after excluding the impairment; cash ended at $0.5M with inventory reduced 6.4% YoY to $27.8M.
• Management highlighted tariff escalation (additional ~30% on orders) and mitigation plans with suppliers; Baby Boom acquisition aided sales, while legacy categories, especially Manhattan Toy, faced softer demand and higher rent/royalty/marketing costs.
• The Board declared a $0.08 quarterly dividend (paid July 3, 2025), and announced a CFO transition (Claire Spencer replacing Craig Demarest effective June 30, 2025), both potential near-term narrative catalysts alongside tariff developments and warehouse consolidation decisions.

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well

• Baby Boom contributed to Q4 sales growth (+2.9% YoY); management expects cross-selling opportunities across brand portfolio.
• Operating cash flow for FY2025 was $9.8M, supporting dividends and debt service; inventories declined 6.4% YoY to $27.8M, reflecting active working capital management.
• Strategic execution continued: Manhattan Toy fully integrated, ecommerce capabilities expanded (website redesign improving engagement), and international distribution using distributors progressing, with Legoland plush supply opportunity expanding including Shanghai park.

Quote: “Our fourth quarter sales were 2.9% higher than the prior year quarter… we acquired Baby Boom Consumer Products in the second quarter, fully integrated Manhattan Toy, continued to reduce operational costs, expanded ecommerce capabilities…” — Olivia Elliott, CEO.

What Went Wrong

• Gross margin fell to 18.3% (from 23.2% prior-year) on higher close-out mix and tariff headwinds; adjusted net income below expectations.
• Marketing and administrative expense rose 17% YoY in Q4 to $4.6M, driven by acquisition-related costs and Baby Boom-related spend; rent and royalty expenses also weighed on profitability.
• Non-cash goodwill impairment of $13.8M led to removal of goodwill from the balance sheet, causing the Q4 GAAP net loss; borrowings were materially higher YoY to fund acquisitions and working capital.

Transcript

Operator (participant)

Good day, and welcome to the Crown Crafts Inc Fourth Quarter Fiscal Year 2025 Conference Call. All participants will be in listen-only mode. Should you need assistance, please signal a conference specialist by pressing the star key followed by zero. After today's presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask questions. To ask a question, you may press star then one on your telephone keypad, and to withdraw your question, please press star then two. Please note today's event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Matt Hodges with Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Matt Hodges (Managing Director of Investor Relations)

Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining the Crown Crafts Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2025 Conference Call. Joining me on the call today are Crown Crafts' President and CEO Olivia Elliott, CFO Craig Demarest, and Vice President Claire Spencer, who will be CFO upon Craig's retirement next week. During today's call, the company may make certain forward-looking statements, and actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied. These statements are subject to risk and uncertainties that may be beyond Crown Crafts' control, and the company is under no obligation to update these statements. For more information about the company's risk factors and other uncertainties, please refer to the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Now I'd like to turn the call over to President and CEO Olivia Elliott.

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

Thank you, Matt. Good morning, everyone. Fiscal 2025 turned out to be a transitional year for the company, much like 2024, but for different reasons. Persistent inflation caused consumers to pull back on discretionary spending throughout the year, resulting in total sales for the fiscal year being slightly below last year. We, along with others who import from China, also experienced a slowdown in sales due to uncertainty around the United States tariff policy. However, as part of our long-term strategic plan, we continued looking for innovative ways to strengthen our market position. This led us to acquire the assets of Baby Boom Consumer Products, which added diaper bags to our portfolio of products, as well as several popular brand licenses such as Bluey and Miss Rachel.

This was our second major acquisition over the last two years, as we continue to expand our product offerings to drive future growth both domestically and internationally. From an operations perspective, we have worked diligently to take out unnecessary costs to maintain acceptable margins and profits. Overall, we remain financially healthy, with adequate cash at year-end and total inventories less than last year. Our cash flow for the year was $9.8 million, providing us the ability to pay regular dividends and service debt. Finally, I would like to introduce the newest member of our team, Claire Spencer. Claire joined Crown Crafts on June 16 and, as Matt mentioned, will become CFO on June 30.

Claire Spencer (VP)

Thank you, Olivia. I'm very excited to join Crown Crafts and have the opportunity to lead the finance and accounting team to support the company's financial and strategic goals and drive shareholder value.

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

Welcome, Claire. We're excited to have you join our team. Before I turn it over to Craig to walk through the financials in more detail, I would like to thank him for his leadership, hard work, and dedication to helping us achieve our goals. The entire Crown Crafts team wishes him a very happy retirement.

Craig Demarest (CFO)

Thank you, Olivia. It's been a pleasure working with you, the Crown Crafts team, the Board of Directors, and all of our shareholders over the last four years. I'll begin with a look at the fourth quarter results and then provide some color on the full year results. Fourth quarter net sales were $23.2 million, a 2.9% increase compared to the prior year quarter. The increase was driven by strong sales of Baby Boom products, partially offset by a decline in sales of bibs, toys, and disposable products. Gross profit for the quarter was 18.3% compared to 23.2% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024. The margin decrease is primarily related to the impact of higher tariffs, increased rent at our Compton facility, an increase in royalty expense resulting from the Baby Boom acquisition, and higher closeout sales at lower margins as we continue to lower our inventory levels.

Marketing and administrative expenses during the quarter increased 17% year-over-year, driven by increased advertising costs and the expenses associated with the Baby Boom business. GAAP net loss for the fourth quarter was $10.8 million, or $1.04 loss per diluted share. GAAP net loss was the result of a $13.8 million goodwill impairment charge resulting from the prolonged decline in our market capitalization, indicating a decline in the fair value of our goodwill reporting units. Following the impairment charge, we have no goodwill in our balance sheet at March 30th, 2025. Adjusted net loss was $429,000, or adjusted diluted loss per share of $0.04. Turning now to our results for the full year, net sales for fiscal 2025 were $87.3 million compared to $87.6 million in the prior year. As Olivia mentioned earlier, sales were impacted by consumers pulling back due to economic conditions.

However, we did see the addition of $11.9 million in net sales from the Baby Boom acquisition, but that was more than offset by declines in the legacy business. Gross profit for the year was 24.4% compared to 26.4% in fiscal 2024, primarily reflecting increased tariffs, rent, and royalty expense, as well as higher closeout sales mentioned earlier. Marketing and administrative expenses included $1.1 million in acquisition costs associated with the Baby Boom acquisition and $244,000 related to the closure of the company's subsidiary in the U.K. GAAP net loss for fiscal 2025 was $9.4 million, or $0.90 loss per diluted share. GAAP net loss was impacted by the goodwill impairment charge discussed earlier. Adjusted net income for the year was $1 million, or adjusted diluted earnings per share of $0.10.

Turning now to our balance sheet, as of the end of fiscal 2025, cash and cash equivalents totaled $521,000 compared to $830,000 at the end of fiscal 2024. Inventories were $27.8 million, a decrease of 6.4% compared to $29.7 million at the end of the last fiscal year. The decline was driven by higher closeout sales to prepare for our upcoming warehouse consolidation. Borrowings under our credit facility at the end of fiscal 2025 were $18.5 million compared to $8.1 million at the end of fiscal 2024, reflecting amounts borrowed in the second quarter to fund the Baby Boom acquisition. 2025 cash flow from operations was $9.8 million compared to $7.1 million in the prior year. We expect to use our cash flow to repay borrowings. However, as always, our debt balance may fluctuate from quarter-to-quarter due to the timing of inventory purchases and other working capital needs.

We paid $0.32 per share in cash dividends to shareholders in fiscal 2025, with a yield of 10% based on yesterday's close. This marks the 15th consecutive year paying out dividends to our shareholders. Our dividend is a key component of our capital allocation strategy of creating and returning value to our shareholders. I will turn the call back over to Olivia for additional comments.

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

Thank you, Craig. Over the last couple of years, the economy has been a headwind for consumers and ultimately Crown Crafts. During this time, we have taken several steps forward to position the company for long-term success when the economy starts to improve. We have added more products to our portfolio through acquisition and our own internal product development. We have added more of the most popular and trending brands through acquisition or by expanding the depth of our product catalog. We continue to have good working relationships with our major retail partners, and we have expanded our e-commerce capabilities. I would like to thank our team for their resilience and all the hard work they have put into integrating our acquisitions, finding opportunities to cut costs, and for their commitment to making Crown Crafts one of the leading producers of infant, toddler, and juvenile consumer products.

As we begin fiscal 2026, our most pressing challenge is navigating the impact of tariffs. As of now, the goods we order will incur an additional 30% tariff. We are working with our manufacturers and our retail partners to absorb a portion of this amount, and we are also looking at other ways to mitigate additional tariff expenses. We will continue to explore ways to increase sales and gain market share. This includes product and channel expansions. In closing, I would like to thank our shareholders for your support, and we look forward to updating you on our progress throughout the year. With that, I'd like to open the line for questions.

Operator (participant)

Thank you. If you'd like to ask a question, please press star then one on your telephone keypad. If you're using a speakerphone, we ask that you please pick up your handset before pressing the keys. If at any point your question has been addressed and you'd like to remove yourself from queue, please press star then two. Today's first question comes from Doug Ruth at Lenox Financial Services. Please go ahead.

Doug Ruth (President)

First, I would like to thank Craig for what he has done for the shareholders. I thought you did a really nice job with the reporting, and I want to wish you well in retirement. I also wanted to welcome Claire to the team. Looking forward to seeing how you're able to increase shareholder value.

Craig Demarest (CFO)

Thank you, Doug. Appreciate it.

Doug Ruth (President)

You're welcome. Can you give us, Olivia, can you give us an update on where things are with the warehouse at this point?

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

We're still exploring pretty much every option that we can think of, but with tariffs, we've kind of put that on the, for the last few months, we've been focused on tariffs and not really on the warehouse, but we're still exploring those options.

Doug Ruth (President)

Do you still think you'll, do you still think you'll make a decision sometime here in fiscal 2026?

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

I hope so. We're probably slowing down on the timeline for actual moving, but I think we will make some decisions in the near future.

Doug Ruth (President)

Okay. I understand that you went to the New York Toy Show that was held in March. I was wondering, how did the show go for the company?

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

Yeah, we had a lot of our sales and product development team that attended Toy Fair. I think they had a lot of really good traffic and some good feedback on the new products that we showed. They actually wrote some orders, but it's not really common to write orders at the show anymore with just the EDI capabilities, etc. From what I understand, everything went well, and the products that we intend to, the new products showed very well.

Doug Ruth (President)

I know that one thing that is featured on the website is the Stella doll, a new Stella doll. I understand that Meghan Markle had purchased a doll for her daughter. Are you able to comment on how the, what's happening with the Stella doll and the redesign and any kind of sell-through?

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

Yes. We redesigned what was called Stella and Wee Baby Stella, and now we have a new Love Stella line that includes a newborn doll. Before, the product started more at maybe the toddler age range, and now we have a newborn doll. We have redesigned the toddler doll so that it sits up better. Yes, Meghan Markle did include our Stella doll on one of her shows, and it certainly helped with a lot of the marketing and the advertising and the social media.

Doug Ruth (President)

Okay. Then I understand that the world's largest LEGOLAND is going to open in Shanghai on July 5, and I was wondering if that creates some opportunity for, will Crown Crafts be providing some of the Star Wars plush animals for that, plush figurines for that location?

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

Yes. They had a soft opening, I believe. I can't remember if it was in late May or early June. From what I understand, the soft opening went very well, and we are supplying the plush for that park.

Doug Ruth (President)

Were Crown Crafts' sales to LEGOLAND, did they increase in fiscal 2025 versus fiscal 2024?

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

2025 versus 2024, yes. I think that the changeovers, so I don't know if you recall that they were only going to allow the LEGO- branded plush into the parks. It used to be us and then a couple of other competitors, and so we had some form of a transition throughout this year, but it has gone slower than we expected. We expect that in the near future, we'll be the only plush in the park.

Doug Ruth (President)

Okay. You had also talked in the past about the diaper bags, that there might be opportunities with possibly some new brands. Is there any development there?

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

Yes. We're still working on that. We've got a lot of excitement from some of our licensing partners that want us to do some licensed diaper bags. To be frank, the tariffs are hitting the diaper bags harder than anything, so we're trying to look at opportunities to keep those costs within reason so that we can expand that further.

Doug Ruth (President)

At one time, you had talked about a potential tax credit for importing products for children or for babies. Is there any update on that at all?

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

I think, are you talking about the tax credit for parents, maybe? Not really for us.

Doug Ruth (President)

Not really for parents. Yeah, for babies and.

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

I have not really heard of that. I haven't heard if that went through or if that's part of the final plan, but there was some talk at some point about giving parents, new parents, a tax credit. Yes.

Doug Ruth (President)

Okay. And then how about the distribution in Europe using the distributor instead of the direct sales force? Is that helping the company?

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

Yes. It takes some time to get all of the new products flowing through the distributors, but I think at the end of the day, we're anticipating our international sales to continue to go up.

Doug Ruth (President)

My last question is, how about the Manhattan Toy website, the redesign there? Has that made a difference for the company?

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

Oh, I think so. I mean, it's much easier to shop on the website. I think we've got a much better visual. It's updated. I think that we're doing a good job of driving more people to the website through our social media posts, etc.

Doug Ruth (President)

Oh, very good. That's nice to hear that. Okay. I'm going to thank you for answering my questions, and all the best to you, Craig.

Craig Demarest (CFO)

Thanks so much, Doug.

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

Thanks, Doug.

Operator (participant)

Thank you. As a reminder, if you'd like to ask a question, please press star then one at this time. Our next question comes from David Woodyatt, a private investor. Please go ahead.

Yes. My questions have been answered. Thank you.

Thank you, sir. This does conclude our question and answer session. I'd like to turn the conference back over to the management team for any closing remarks.

Olivia Elliott (President and CEO)

Thank you. We'd like to thank you for your continued support of Crown Crafts, and we look forward to updating you on our Q1 earnings, which will be in mid-August. Thank you very much.

Operator (participant)

Thank you. This concludes today's conference call. We thank you all for attending today's presentation. You may now disconnect your lines and have a wonderful day.