Michael Speetzen
Analyst · Baird
Thanks, J.C. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for your interest in Polaris. We delivered a strong start to the year with our first quarter results reflecting strong fundamental performance across the business. I'm proud to say our team did an excellent job focusing on what we could control, executing commercially driving operational efficiencies, advancing our tariff mitigation plans and optimizing our portfolio. Results exceeded our expectations during the quarter, with reported sales up 8% or up 14% organically, excluding Indian Motorcycle and its related impacts. And we delivered adjusted EPS of $0.13, which was well above our expectations. And EPS, excluding Indian would have been $0.26. First quarter sales were driven by double-digit growth in our Power Sports segment. led by our utility RANGER line, our fast-growing commercial business and Snowmobiles. PG&A also had another great quarter, bolstered by strong performance in utility and 14% growth in snowmobile, accessories, parts and apparel as ridership remains strong. Across our portfolio, North American retail grew 1% with ORV up 3%, both measured exclude used vehicles. We ended the quarter with share gains in both ORV and Snow as well as with Godfrey pontoons. Dealer inventory levels remain healthy, reflecting strong operational alignment across our manufacturing plants, shipment plans and retail channels. Our margins, even with 240 basis points of headwind from tariffs, we're able to improve gross margins by 389 basis points. This was higher than our initial expectations due to a better mix within ORV and Marine, more favorable net pricing as well as improved operational efficiencies. Adjusted EBITDA margins increased 277 basis points with strong operational performance, partially offset by the timing of certain operating expenses moving into the first quarter. This resulted in an adjusted EPS of $0.13, well above our original expectations. Overall, it was a strong start to the year, and we believe the actions we have taken to refocus Polaris are creating a stronger foundation for the future. advancing our focus on leadership in Powersports, localizing and strengthening our operating footprint and positioning Polaris to deliver higher earnings power and stronger returns over time. Digging deeper into retail, North American ORV retail was up 3%, and we gained share for the fourth consecutive quarter. While retail within the recreational category continues to be challenged, down high single digits this quarter, we are seeing strong growth in our utility business, which speaks to the strength and diversification of our product portfolio. Utility ORV, which now makes up 70% of ORV revenue grew to a high single-digit rate as the industry continues to grow. While the growth in utility remains broad-based across our product portfolio. We did see an uptick in demand for vehicles used to move equipment and people across large data center construction projects that can span hundreds or even thousands of acres. As these build-outs continue to expand, we see this as a secular tailwind for the business and believe we are well positioned to continue gaining share in supporting that demand. The monthly cadence of retail performance in the quarter started out strong in January and February given a constructive consumer backdrop. However, this was followed by a decline starting in mid-March, which correlated with increased geopolitical tensions and rising oil prices. Interestingly, we are now seeing retail performance return to growth in April with positive metrics across all categories, excluding youth, where we continue to build back inventory. For Snowmobiles, the '25'26 season delivered retail growth of 25% and driven by early season snowfall in the flat lands. Conditions varied later in the season, but many mountain areas experienced lower snowfall with some seeing close to low snowfall levels on record. Despite this, we gained multiple points of share due to our strategic promotional activity to help dealers move noncurrent inventory and innovation in the Wide Track and Sport Utility segment. Turning to Marine. First quarter retail was down low double digits according to the last SSI report, which is not a complete data set with important states yet to report. The first quarter represents about 10% of annual retail and therefore, we don't extrapolate these results the rest of the year. Importantly, boat show activity was up year-over-year for both brands, and there remains strong excitement around our premium offerings at both Bennington and Godfrey. Before moving on, I want to touch on our product portfolio. something that can be hard to fully appreciate through a 10 or 20 dealer survey. Simply put, this is the strongest portfolio I've seen in my nearly 11 years at Polaris. Our broad ORV lineup delivers a distinct customer on distinct customer needs, whether it be for a work vehicle to find their next adventure or to have an unmatched day on the dues. Our category-defining utility vehicle, the RANGER XD 1500 sets the sets the bar for capability, while the Polaris expedition offers the industry's only adventure vehicle. And for customers looking for uncompromised performance in the wide open category, the Razor Pro R has continued to define what's possible with victories at the car, King of the Hammers Desert race and our recent wins at the San Felipe 250, demonstrating the vehicle's leadership. The innovation at the top carries down across the lineup. We've talked about the success of the RANGER 500, which delivers exceptional value to customers and continues turning at dealers at unprecedented levels. and the recent launch of the new RANGER 1000 cab and RANGER XP 1000 cab, which strengthens our offering in the latest and fastest growing full cab utility category. In fact, we are seeing strong double-digit utility side-by-side retail growth in April on the heels of this launch. In our seasonal business, we launched our model year '27 snowmobile lineup in February which featured the expansion of our Rec utility sleds and the new 9RVR1dynamics. Originally launched on our Razor lineup, Dynamics technology was later introduced in our snow portfolio in 2025 and it remains the industry's only snow system with full shot control. This year, 1/3 of SnowCheck orders included dynamics. In Marine, we continue to set the standard for innovation and quality with the newly redesigned Bennington QX and the Godfrey Sanpan, which was named Boating Magazine's Pontoon of the Year and the Hurricane Sundeck 3200 won the innovation award at the Miami Boat Show. It's easy to focus on individual products, but would truly differentiates Polaris as the strength of our entire portfolio. We're the global leader in powersports, and we operate like it, living the riding experience and constantly working to make it better. And while it's still early, I'll say this, I have not been misexcited about what we have yet to come. Dealer inventory continues to be in a good place as we've taken a thoughtful approach in pacing our shipments in line with current demand. Our dealer inventory levels are healthy across our major categories. With some help from Mother Nature this last season, we made significant progress on snowmobile inventory and ended the quarter down over 50% from a year ago. We exit the snowmobile season with dealer inventory healthier than it's been in many years. So whether you look at our inventory on a days sales basis, which remains near 100 days or on a current to noncurrent mix, which skews positively to more current our inventory at dealers is in a good spot. We remain committed to the alignment of build, ship and retail as we partner with dealers to provide them with the right mix and quantity of vehicles to succeed. I'm now going to turn it over to Bob to provide you with more details on the financials.