Helen of Troy (HELE) Q2 2027 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q2 sales rose 2.1% YoY to $440.9M; adjusted operating income increased 40.9% to $37.9M, and adjusted diluted EPS rose to $0.79 from $0.59.

• FY27 earnings, EBITDA and cash-flow outlooks increased, while the sales range narrowed; priorities include restoring brand momentum, strengthening accountability and reducing debt.

Financial highlights

• Q2 gross profit rose 20.7% to $230.1M and gross margin expanded 8.0 percentage points to 52.2%; tariff refunds net of higher tariff costs contributed ~560 bps, alongside lower trade and promotional expense.

• Adjusted EBITDA increased to $49.4M from $36.2M; adjusted EBITDA margin improved to 11.2% from 8.4%.

• Adjusted operating margin rose to 8.6% from 6.2%; GAAP net income was $4.6M, versus a $308.6M loss in the prior-year quarter, which included $326.4M of impairment charges.

• H1 sales grew 4.9% to $843.0M; adjusted diluted EPS declined 4.0% to $0.96, while H1 net income was $40.4M versus a $759.4M loss.

• H1 free cash flow was $38.3M, up from $23.0M; higher cash earnings and lower inventory and interest payments were partly offset by receivables, incentive payouts and taxes.

Outlook and guidance

• FY27 sales outlook narrowed to $1.768B–$1.822B, or a 1.0% decline to 2.0% growth; Home & Outdoor is forecast at $851M–$876M and Beauty & Wellness at $917M–$946M.

• Adjusted EBITDA guidance rose to $203M–$210M; adjusted diluted EPS to $3.60–$4.15, including a $0.30–$0.45 after-tax tariff-refund benefit.

• Base-business adjusted EBITDA guidance remained $193M–$196M and base-business adjusted EPS guidance narrowed to $3.30–$3.70; consolidated guidance includes tariff refunds.

• Operating cash flow outlook increased to $163M–$179M and free cash flow to $120M–$140M; FY27 capex is $39M–$43M.

• Outlook includes ~$80.5M in tariff refunds, with 83%–88% reinvested and a $10M–$14M net pre-tax benefit; year-end net leverage target is no more than 2.7x.