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Ready to pounce?

With Puma’s stock under pressure, Chinese giants are circling the storied brand

With 77 years of history behind the brand, 2025 might just be Puma’s worst, as losses have piled up over the last year. At least the company’s new elite running shoe is a winner.

Claire Yubin Oh

12/3/25 5:17AM

Last week, Bloomberg reported that Fila and Jack Wolfskin owner Anta Sports was mulling a potential takeover of Puma — sending shares of the German sportswear maker up some 19% on Thursday, the most since late 2001. And Anta Sports isn’t the only suitor eyeing the discounted Puma, per sources cited in the report, as rival Chinese apparel firm Li Ning and Japan’s Asics might also be interested.

That news finally gave investors something to smile about, but it’s still nowhere close to repairing the damage of Puma’s miserable year, in which the stock has shed more than 50%. Furthermore, any potential sale is unlikely to be an easy one, as the Pinault family, which owns a 29% stake in the company, could prove an obstacle to any sale.

No room to swing a big cat

Puma has long tried to straddle the fine line between athletic apparel and fashion appeal. But squeezed by new competition in the running space from brands like On and Hoka, and facing fading customer enthusiasm even with heavy discounts, the brand’s profits have vanished. Over the last four quarters, the company has racked up the equivalent of nearly ~$330 million worth of losses, and its market cap has shrunk from nearly $20 billion in 2021 to just $3.5 billion at the time of writing.

Under its new CEO, Puma aims to return to growth by 2027 and become one of the top three sports brands globally — but with swelling excess inventory and a customer base used to seeing marked-down prices, that’s not going to be easy, and the company has already slashed ~1,400 jobs this year.

One bright spot — which reportedly shocked the people at Puma as much as everyone else — is the company’s latest elite running shoe, Fast-R, which blew the competition away in one study.

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American Airlines joins the flock, hiking bag fees amid higher jet fuel prices

American Airlines on Thursday announced that it, too, will be hiking the fees it charges customers to check luggage.

With the move, all four of the major US airlines, which together control about 80% of the US market, have now hiked their baggage fees in recent days amid surging jet fuel prices.

The change will go into effect on tickets bought on or after Thursday, the same day Southwest’s hike begins.

Since late March, JetBlue, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, Canada’s WestJet, and Southwest have hiked their fees. Experts expect more major carriers to follow, and to potentially tweak the pricing of other ancillary revenue sources like seat assignments and carry-on luggage.

American Airlines updates bag fees and Basic Economy fares

The change will go into effect on tickets bought on or after Thursday, the same day Southwest’s hike begins.

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Less than a year after implementing them, Southwest is also hiking its bag fees

Southwest Airlines has joined the growing list of airlines opting to hike their bag fees amid sustained higher jet fuel costs.

Starting today, the first checked bag at the carrier — which implemented bag fees less than a year ago — will jump from $35 to $45, and the second from $45 to $55. Southwest quietly disclosed the change Tuesday.

Southwest assigned the decision to “part of an ongoing analysis of the business and against the evolving global backdrop.”

As of Wednesday, jet fuel prices dropped to $4.16 a gallon, per the Argus US Jet Fuel Index, down from $4.81 on Tuesday following President Trump’s ceasefire announcement, which sent travel stocks soaring. Major airlines have shed some of those gains in premarket trading Thursday.

With the move to hike bag fees, Southwest joins JetBlue, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and Canada’s WestJet, all of which also boosted fees this month. Experts expect more major carriers to follow, and to potentially tweak the pricing of other ancillary revenue sources like seat assignments and carry-on luggage.

Three US airlines have already hiked baggage fees. More are likely on the way.