Moody's: Global luxury retailers' earnings growth could double in 2017

By

Jennifer Braun

Published
Jun 1, 2017

Luxury retailers' earnings growth could double in 2017, but won't return to double-digit levels soon, according to a report by Moody’s Investors Service published on Wednesday.

 
The Moody's report looked at a sample of 11 luxury product manufacturers and compared a range of metrics including revenue growth, EBITDA margin, share buybacks and dividends.
 
"A return to double-digit growth for the global luxury retail segment is unlikely until at least 2020 as the Chinese consumer boom has slowed, value-conscious consumers are now less likely to stand for price hikes, and competition from other sectors like travel and fine dining remains elevated," said Vincent Gusdorf, Vice President, Senior Analyst at Moody's.

The credit rating firm said luxury companies will also look to cut share buybacks when necessary to preserve credit ratios, but payout ratios will remain high.
 
Companies are also now putting the brakes on new store openings and are cautious of rising competition, which is pushing some to improve productivity.
 
Still, in terms of global luxury retailers, Moody's says overall credit quality of the luxury industry should improve slightly in 2017. 

With reporting from Reuters.