By Tess Stynes
Under Armour Inc. agreed to acquire MyFitnessPal for $475
million, in a deal that expands the Athletic-apparel maker's
digital fitness platform.
The company also reported that its fourth-quarter profit rose
37% driven by continued strength in apparel and footwear sales.
Under Armour said the addition of MyFitnessPal adds nutritional
resources such as a calorie counter, nutrition and exercise tracker
to its offerings. The deal is expected to close in the current
quarter, also is expected to complement the company's recent
acquisitions of MapMyFitness and Endomondo.
Shares rose 2.7% to $75.56 in recent after-hours trading as
sales for the latest quarter topped expectations.
The Baltimore-based company last fall surpassed Adidas AG to
become the No. 2 sportswear brand in the U.S. by retail sales.
Under Armour expects its overall sales to reach $3.76 billion this
year, matching estimates of analysts surveyed by Thomson
Reuters.
According to data released by Sterne Agee and SportScanInfo last
month, Under Armour had $2.6 billion in footwear and apparel sales
in the U.S. for the 11 months through Dec. 31, compared with $1.6
billion for Adidas.
However both remain far behind Nike, which has long held the top
perch in sales of sweats and sneakers in the U.S. and tallied sales
of $11.8 billion during that period.
In the latest quarter, footwear revenue surged 55% to $85.8
million, led by expanded offerings in running and basketball.
Apparel sales climbed 30% to $707.7 million.
Overall, Under Armour reported a profit of $87.7 million, or 40
cents a share, up from $64.2 million, or 30 cents a share, a year
earlier. Revenue jumped 31% to $895.2 million.
Analysts expected per-share profit of 39 cents and revenue of
$849 million.
Over the years, Under Armour has built up its footwear offerings
and expanded its fleet of concept stores, targeting new
international markets for a brand best known in the U.S. as a
vendor of performance athletic apparel.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
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