Camping World Holdings, Inc. Reports Third Quarter 2023 Results, Total Unit Sales of 32,330 Exceeds 2022, Rigorous Inventory Discipline and Continued Acquisitions Set Stage for Improved 2024

Camping World Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CWH) (the “Company” or “CWH”), America’s Recreation Dealer, today reported results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2023.

Marcus Lemonis, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Camping World Holdings, Inc. stated, “We are laser focused on the final stages of cleansing our inventory going into 2024. These actions have come with near-term gross margin compression, but we believe now is the moment to put the finishing touches on our industry-leading inventory position and prepare the business for the next up-cycle. In 2024, we expect total company revenue, same store unit sales, total gross margin, and earnings to increase year over year.”

Third Quarter-over-Quarter Operating Highlights

• Revenue was $1.7 billion for the third quarter, a decrease of $126.1 million, or 6.8%.
• Used vehicle revenue was a record $590.2 million for the third quarter, an increase of $64.2 million, or 12.2%, and used vehicle unit sales were a record 17,125 units, an increase of 2,665 units, or 18.4%.
• New vehicle revenue was $679.2 million for the third quarter, a decline of $154.9 million, or 18.6%, and new vehicle unit sales were 15,205 units, a decrease of 2,411 units, or 13.7%.
• Average selling price of new and used vehicles declined 5.7% and 5.2%, respectively, during the third quarter. As the procurement prices of model year 2024 new vehicles declined compared to model years 2022 and 2023, the Company actively discounted certain used vehicles during the third quarter to reduce inventory levels of aged used vehicles.
• Products, service and other revenue was $235.6 million for the third quarter, a decline of $33.3 million, or 12.4%. The decrease was driven largely by lower demand and lower stocking levels of lifestyle, activities, design, and home products, as well as declines in our direct to manufacturer RV furniture revenues due to RV manufacturer production slowdowns and discounting related to our Active Sports Restructuring.
• Same store used vehicle unit sales increased 10.9% for the third quarter, and same store new vehicle unit sales decreased 21.5%.
• Gross profit was $523.1 million, a decrease of $70.6 million, or 11.9%. Total gross margin was 30.2%, a decrease of 175 basis points. The decrease in gross profit and gross margin was driven largely by the decrease in average selling price of new and used vehicles discussed above. The decrease in finance and insurance, net gross profit was partially offset by improved retention on finance and insurance products, which drove favorable adjustments to reserves in the third quarter of 2023. Good Sam Services and Plans gross profit and gross margin was favorably impacted by finalizing contract negotiations to exit an arrangement with a service partner in the quarter.
• Selling, general and administrative expenses were $415.3 million, a decrease of $3.8 million, or 0.9%, primarily as a result of our efforts to reduce expenses. In the quarter, the Company closed two underperforming retail stores and one distribution center, whose leases were successfully terminated. These cost reductions were partially offset by additional employee compensation and facility costs resulting from the 8.3% increase in store location count to 209 at September 30, 2023 from 193 at September 30, 2022.
• Subsequent to September 30, 2023, the Company made the decision to consolidate or close seven underperforming dealership locations in order to redeploy working capital to higher returning investments.
• Floor plan interest expense was $19.8 million, an increase of $10.3 million, or 108.9%, and other interest expense, net was $35.2 million, an increase of $14.7 million, or 71.7%. These increases were primarily as a result of the rise in interest rates.
• Net income was $30.9 million, a decrease of $72.1 million, or 70.0%, driven primarily by the pretax $71.7 million decrease in new and used vehicle gross profit, the $14.7 million increase in other interest expense, net, and the $10.3 million increase in floor plan interest, which was partially offset by the $3.8 million decrease in selling, general, and administrative expenses and lower income tax expense from net reductions of pretax income.
• Diluted earnings per share of Class A common stock was $0.32 in 2023 versus diluted earnings per share of Class A common stock of $0.97 in 2022. Adjusted earnings per share - diluted⁽¹⁾ of Class A common stock was $0.39 in 2023 versus adjusted earnings per share – diluted⁽¹⁾ of Class A common stock of $1.07 in 2022.
• Adjusted EBITDA⁽¹⁾ was $95.0 million, a decrease of $78.4 million, or 45.2%, driven primarily by the $71.7 million decrease in new and used vehicle gross profit and the $10.3 million increase in floor plan interest, which was partially offset by the $3.8 million decrease in selling, general, and administrative expenses⁽²⁾.

Earnings Conference Call and Webcast Information

A conference call to discuss the Company’s third quarter 2023 financial results is scheduled for November 2, 2023, at 7:30 am Central Time. Investors and analysts can participate on the conference call by dialing 1-877-407-9039 (international callers please dial 1-201-689-8470) and using conference ID# 13741006. Interested parties can also listen to a live webcast or replay of the conference call by logging on to the Investor Relations section on the Company’s website at http://investor.campingworld.com. The replay of the conference call webcast will be available on the investor relations website for approximately 90 days.

Presentation

This press release presents historical results for the periods presented for the Company and its subsidiaries, which are presented in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”), unless noted as a non-GAAP financial measure. The Company’s initial public offering (“IPO”) and related reorganization transactions (“Reorganization Transactions”) that occurred on October 6, 2016 resulted in the Company as the sole managing member of CWGS Enterprises, LLC (“CWGS, LLC”), with sole voting power in and control of the management of CWGS, LLC. The Company’s position as sole managing member of CWGS, LLC includes periods where the Company has held a minority economic interest in CWGS, LLC. As of September 30, 2023, the Company owned 52.8% of CWGS, LLC. Accordingly, the Company consolidates the financial results of CWGS, LLC and reports a non-controlling interest in its consolidated financial statements.

About Camping World Holdings, Inc.

Camping World Holdings, Inc., headquartered in Lincolnshire, IL, (together with its subsidiaries) is America’s largest retailer of RVs and related products and services. Our vision is to build a long-term legacy business that makes RVing fun and easy, and our Camping World and Good Sam brands have been serving RV consumers since 1966. We strive to build long-term value for our customers, employees, and shareholders by combining a unique and comprehensive assortment of RV products and services with a national network of RV dealerships, service centers and customer support centers along with the industry’s most extensive online presence and a highly trained and knowledgeable team of associates serving our customers, the RV lifestyle, and the communities in which we operate. We also believe that our Good Sam organization and family of programs and services uniquely enable us to connect with our customers as stewards of the RV enthusiast community and the RV lifestyle. With RV sales and service locations in 43 states, Camping World has grown to become the prime destination for everything RV. For more information, visit www.CampingWorld.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements about cleansing our inventory, macroeconomic and industry trends, dividend payments and capital allocation, our business plans and goals, the Company’s acquisition pipeline and plans, and future financial results, including anticipated gross margin compression and outlook for 2024. These forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations.

These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the following: general economic conditions, including inflation and interest rates; the availability of financing to us and our customers; fuel shortages or high prices for fuel; the success of our manufacturers; general economic conditions in our markets; changes in consumer preferences; competition in our industry; risks related to acquisitions, new store openings and expansion into new markets; our failure to maintain the strength and value of our brands; our ability to manage our inventory; fluctuations in our same store sales; the cyclical and seasonal nature of our business; risks related to the cybersecurity incident announced in February 2022; our dependence on the availability of adequate capital and risks related to our debt; risks related to COVID-19; our ability to execute and achieve the expected benefits of our cost cutting or restructuring initiatives; our reliance on our fulfillment and distribution centers; natural disasters, including epidemic outbreaks; our dependence on our relationships with third party suppliers and lending institutions; risks associated with selling goods manufactured abroad; our ability to retain senior executives and attract and retain other qualified employees; risks associated with leasing substantial amounts of space; risks associated with our private brand offerings; we may incur asset impairment charges for goodwill, intangible assets or other long-lived assets; tax risks; regulatory risks; data privacy and cybersecurity risks; risks related to our intellectual property; the impact of ongoing or future lawsuits against us and certain of our officers and directors; and risks related to our organizational structure.

These and other important factors discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10‑K filed for the year ended December 31, 2022 and our other reports filed with the SEC could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements made in this press release. Any such forward-looking statements represent management’s estimates as of the date of this press release. While we may elect to update such forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we disclaim any obligation to do so, even if subsequent events cause our views to change, except as required under applicable law. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.

Future declarations of quarterly dividends are subject to the determination and discretion of the Company’s Board of Directors based on its consideration of various factors, including the Company’s results of operations, financial condition, level of indebtedness, anticipated capital requirements, contractual restrictions, restrictions in its debt agreements, restrictions under applicable law, receipt of excess tax distributions from CWGS Enterprises, LLC, its business prospects and other factors that the Company’s Board of Directors may deem relevant.

We intend to use our official Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts, each at the handle @CampingWorld, as well as the investor page of our website, investor.campingworld.com, as a distribution channel of material information about the Company and for complying with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. The information we post through these social media channels and on our investor webpage may be deemed material. Accordingly, investors should subscribe to these accounts and our investor alerts, in addition to following our press releases, SEC filings, public conference calls and webcasts. These social media channels may be updated from time to time.

Comparison of Certain Trends to Pre-COVID-19 Pandemic Periods

Beginning in the first quarter of 2021 and continuing through the first quarter of 2023, the Company experienced sequential decreases in new vehicle gross margin, primarily due to the higher cost of new vehicles resulting from the lower industry supply of travel trailers and motorhomes for much of 2021. Additionally, new and used vehicle gross margins have declined for each of the first three quarters of 2023 compared to the corresponding periods in 2022. However, third quarter 2023 new vehicle gross margins were slightly higher than a similar range that the Company experienced in the third quarter pre-COVID-19 pandemic periods of 2016 to 2019, which we believe are more typical demand environments than during the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the third quarter of 2023, as the procurement prices of model year 2024 new vehicles declined compared to model years 2022 and 2023, the Company actively discounted certain used vehicles to reduce inventory levels of aged used vehicles. This discounting had a negative impact on used vehicle gross margins during the third quarter of 2023.

Additionally, the percentage of total unit sales relating to used vehicles was significantly higher in the third quarter of 2023 compared to the pre-COVID-19 pandemic periods of 2016 to 2019. The Company is continuing to execute on its used vehicle strategy, which differentiates it from the competition with proprietary tools, such as the RV Valuator, a focus on the development and retention of its service technician team, and investment in its service bay infrastructure.

The following table presents vehicle gross margin and unit sales mix for the three months ended September 30, 2023 and pre-COVID-19 pandemic periods for the three months ended September 30, 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016 (unaudited):