Polaris’ First Quarter Sales Show 22% Drop

While the powersports industry has seen massive growth over the last decade, there are some stretches that don’t necessarily reflect the greater trends. Polaris recently reported a large decrease in its retail sales for the first quarter of 2022. The brand’s Q1 earnings report carries a headline indicating a reported 22 percent decrease in retail sales.

It must be noted that the 22 percent drop is not versus the prior quarter or month but rather against the same period in the prior year. That first quarter of 2021 was a high time riding the COVID swell, with a 70 percent increase in retail sales versus Q1 of 2020. Still, a 22 percent drop is nothing to ignore, and despite the poor news Polaris states that off-road vehicle (ORV) demand is still extremely high, if not as strong as ever. That comes in spite of repeated price increases too.

In its report, Polaris cites supply chain issues as a reason for its inability to produce units, among other factors. Other notes from the financial document are a total global sales of $1.957 billion, reflecting a number almost unchanged from the same period the year prior. And 85 percent (equating to roughly $1.663 billion) of that total value came from North America, with North American sales rising slightly when compared to the same period in the prior year. Polaris managed to repurchase $172 million worth of stock, or 1.5 million shares.

“Sales for this quarter remained relatively flat to last year, depressed by continued supply chain pressures. While much of our focus centers on navigating the highly volatile and challenging supply chain environment, demand for our industry-leading products and services remains healthy, as we continued to see high levels of pre-sold orders and low cancellations, strong short- and long-term repurchase rates, and record levels of PG&A attachments,” Polaris CEO Mike Speetzen said. “We are making strategic investments in both innovation and operations to enable our long-term growth plans and productivity needs and strengthen our position as the global leader in powersports.”

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