Malibu Boats has reported a 29.9 per cent increase in net sales to $252.9m for the three months ended 30 September 2026, despite a softer summer retail market, particularly in the ski-wake category. The company says it is managing wholesale shipments in line with retail demand to protect dealer health, a strategy that has constrained sales against its guidance but is intended to support its dealer network through the current market cycle.
“Our results for the three months ended September 30, 2026 reflect a softer retail environment over the summer,” says Steve Menneto, president and CEO of Malibu Boats. His comments come as the company issues its latest set of financials.
The softness showed up mostly in the ski-wake boat category, which Menneto clarifies was under pressure across the industry through the summer. He calls it: “a category dynamic, not a Malibu specific issue,” and says the company continues to gain share across its portfolio even as the category has softened.
Malibu Boats reports 29.9 per cent sales growth
Highlights for three months ending 30 September 2026 (compared to three months ending 30 September 2025):
- Net sales increased 29.9 per cent to $252.9 million
- Unit volume increased 15.1 per cent to 1,299 units
- Gross profit increased 35.5 per cent to $37.8 million
- GAAP net income (loss) increased from a net loss of $0.7 million to a net income of $6.1 million
- GAAP net income (loss) available to Class A Common Stock per share (diluted) increased from a net loss of $0.04 per share to a net income of $0.30 per share
- Adjusted EBITDA increased 21.7 per cent to $14.3 million
- Adjusted net income per share remained consistent at $0.15 per share on a basic weighted-average share count of 19.7 million shares of Class A Common Stock
- Cash flows used in operating activities was $31.1 million, reflecting seasonal working capital investment and an inventory rebuild during the quarter
Wholesale shipment management
Menneto believes that feature-rich boats are still in play, but payment buyers are on the sidelines. “We are trying to help them out … with better financing rates and so forth.”
The company’s decision to manage wholesale shipments with discipline (to protect dealer health) kept net sales modestly below its guided range and constrained adjusted EBITDA, he says.
“We will continue to align wholesale shipments with retail demand to support our dealers through this cycle, and our outlook for the next quarter reflects that approach.”
He says tangible progress is being made on our long-term priorities, from completing the first US-built Saxdor boats at Fort Pierce to debuting new models across brands at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show.
“We, year over year, outpaced last year FLIBS in terms of retail sales.” Menneto notes that with sold boats the selling prices were up. “The model mix was rich . . . it was a really compelling FLIBS for us across the seven brands that we had there.”
“We remain intentional about our outlook until we see more durable evidence of a broader recovery, but our conviction in build, innovate, grow and the mid-cycle opportunity in front of us remains strong.”
Saxdor targets 200 US-built boats a year
“Cobalt and our Saltwater brands grew volume and Saxdor contributed meaningfully to growth,” he continues. Malibu Boats saw a strong Q4 (ending 30 June) as Saxdor added $61m in sales.
With the latter, the focus is on efficient assembly. “We continue to see a runway to 200 Saxdor builds a year in Fort Pierce, before investing in plant expansion. Our rationale behind the acquisition, having Saxdor built in the US puts the brand much closer to its North American dealers and customers – that is where the investment we have made in the platform really starts to work for us. We are also widening Saxdor’s reach adding new dealers across The Americas and working with MarineMax to expand distribution in the US.” Earlier this week, the company announced three new dealers appointed in the US and Canada.
Malibu Boats maintains cautious outlook
“Our balance sheet gives us the flexibility to support the business through the cycle,” says David Black, CFO.
“The refinancing we completed in July extended our maturity to 2031, and we ended the quarter with approximately $213.5 million available of liquidity. Our cash flow for the quarter reflected an uptick in normal seasonal working capital, which we expect to reverse as the year progresses. With our $70 million share repurchase authorisation in place, we will remain balanced and disciplined in allocating capital as we execute against our strategy.”
Based in Loudon, Tennessee, Malibu Boats designs, manufactures and markets a diverse range of recreational powerboats, including performance sport boats, sterndrive boats, outboard boats, and premium adventure dayboats. In the performance sport boat category it has Malibu and Axis brands. In the 20 – 40’ segment of the sterndrive boat category it has Cobalt. Brands within fibreglass outboard fishing boat market are Pursuit and Maverick Boat Group, and in the premium adventure dayboat there’s Saxdor.
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