Malibu Boats reported record net sales of $375.1 million in its fiscal third quarter, an increase of 9% compared with the prior-year quarter. Gross margin of 26.3% was down 190 basis points from 2022.
The company said in a statement that net sales for the quarter were driven by increased unit volumes and a favorable model mix for saltwater fishing boats and for Cobalt models. The reduction in gross margin was “due to slower volume growth within our higher margin Malibu/Axis segment, as channel inventories normalize.”
Unit volume in the quarter was 2,637 compared with 2,562 in the previous year. Net sales per unit were $142.3 million versus $134.4 million in 2022. The mix of brands was Malibu/Axis 50.7%, saltwater fishing 27.2% and Cobalt 22.1%.
Gross profit of $98.6 million for the quarter was an increase from $97.1 million the previous year. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 21.1%, down from 23.2%. Adjusted EBITDA was nearly equal at $79.3 million in 2023 and $79.8 million in 2022.
Malibu said it is pursuing vertical integration across all of its boat brands to drive overall growth and control supply chain, quality and input costs. The next phase of its growth strategy is to develop a 260,000-square-foot facility near Malibu headquarters, build a 100,000-square-foot tooling design center at Pursuit, and introduce Monsoon sterndrives to Cobalt in the first quarter of fiscal 2024.
