Thule Group AB is a Swedish company that manufactures outdoor equipment and related solutions. Examples of Thule’s products include roof racks for cars. Roof racks include, for example, ski boxes and bike racks.
History:
Thule Group was founded by the Thulin family in 1942. The business idea originated from a fishing product founded by Erik Thulin, which he named Thule. Thulin started selling this product to fishermen in Scandinavia, thus kicking off the business.
Thule only shifted to selling car-related equipment in the 1960s, which has become the main driver of Thule’s business.
Thule was listed on the stock exchange in 2014.
Financial Figures:
Here are a few good slides from Thule’s Q4/2020 report:
Thule’s business consists mainly of four parts:
So, sports and cargo transport, RV products (recreational vehicle), child carriers (e.g., for bikes), and finally various luggage, backpacks, etc. As the image shows, the corona pandemic has had its impact on Thule’s business. The luggage segment has taken a hit as travel has been heavily restricted. The following comment was found regarding the RV segment:
RV has performed excellently in America, where growth has been 73%.
The “Active with kids” segment also performed well with 37% growth. Finally, “Sports and Cargo carriers,” i.e., racks for bikes, among others, had yielded good results, driven by the cycling trend.
The effects of the corona pandemic were mentioned in Thule’s presentation:
Thule’s own financial targets:
5 largest owners:
Analyst coverage: Analyst coverage for Thule is available from at least the following banks: SEB, Nordea, Handelsbanken, Danske Bank, and Pareto Securities.
My own view:
Thule appears to be a safe long-term investment if outdoor trends continue to gain popularity. Growth for Thule in America has been good, which could prove to be an excellent growth driver. In America, trends related to a healthy lifestyle have become more common recently. (cf. Harvia’s saunas)
Thule’s business could be driven by, for example, trends in healthy and active lifestyles.
Share price:
3y
YTD
If you have any information to share about Thule, please do! I cannot fit all information into this presentation, so sharing knowledge is welcome 