Anta Sports to Puma this morning: “Yo… You Gonna Eat That?”

Well, Happy Thanksgiving morning to Puma whose shares are up 14% after reports that Anta Sports, China’s $40 billion version of Nike, is considering buying them up. Remember, this is Anta, the same crew who turned around FILA like it was a musty Goodwill find.

(Source: Yahoo Finance)

So how did Puma get into this position? Well probably because Puma’s 2025 has looked like a estate sale that never ends. Shares are down more than 50% this year. To make matters worse… earlier this month, the stock hit a 10-year low. 

Revenue has been shrinking at a double-digit pace, mostly because Puma can’t get shoppers excited no matter how many new drops they push out. The brand’s momentum is caught between “generic gym class shoe” and “forgot they existed.” Tariffs have made U.S. customers even stingier… and at the same time inventory levels at the highest they’ve ever been.

CEO Arthur Hoeld, appointed July 1, is in the middle of what he calls a “reset,” which is a kind way of putting it.

His turnaround plan involves cutting jobs, deleting most of Puma’s product line, cleaning up distribution, fixing cash management, improving marketing, and reducing operational expenses… essentially grabbing every lever available and yanking hard. 

Then came the guidance bomb. Puma gutted its 2025 forecast so thoroughly that analysts had to triple-check they weren’t being pranked. Puma went from expecting real profits to suddenly warning about a low double-digit sales slide and an operating loss… a catastrophic swing from the $485 million to $570 million they claimed were incoming.

So why Anta? Why now? Because Puma left the back door wide open. Anta reportedly wants a crack at buying the brand… Bloomberg says they’re one of several potential bidders, including Li Ning and Asics. I guess everyone wants a piece of Puma… except Puma’s customers.

For Anta, this could be their gateway into the Western world. They already own part of Amer Sports… the portfolio with Salomon, Wilson, and Atomic. Adding Puma would give them a huge market in the US to try to build on.

Analysts argue Anta could whip Puma back into shape the same way they revived FILA, which they rescued from total irrelevance by actually giving consumers what they wanted. But before any of this becomes real, there’s a massive complication: Artemis.

Puma’s largest shareholder is Artemis, which owns 29% of the company. Artemis is the Pinault family’s holding company (the same billionaires who control Gucci-owner Kering) and they do not sell cheap. Artemis has been a complete disappointment lately… so maybe Puma isn’t their favorite child right now… but that doesn’t mean they’ll accept a peasant bid. 

Reports say Artemis’s valuation expectations for Puma are so wildly optimistic they might stall the entire deal before it even leaves the driveway. Negotiating with them is like trying to buy a 2004 Ford Focus from a dad who insists it’s worth double because “he changed the oil himself.”

But honestly, one glance at Puma’s stock chart and you can’t help but think: guys… maybe just be grateful anyone wants you at all.

At the time of publishing this article, Stocks.News doesn’t hold positions in companies mentioned in the article.