Crocs surges, nearly erasing year-to-date losses as HeyDude sales finally make investors glad

Crocs’ across-the-board earnings beat, helped by better-than-expected results for its previously floundering HeyDude brand, sent the stock surging to open 24% higher.

The shoemaker reported $989.8 million in revenue for the fourth quarter ahead of market open on Thursday, up 3.1% from a year before and handily beating forecasts of $962 million, according to analysts polled by Bloomberg.

The strong revenue gains were fueled in part by a sales beat for HeyDude, the company’s sneaker and loafer brand. The brand saw sales flat at $228 million, surpassing the company’s own expectations for a 4% to 6% year-over-year drop.

Crocs shares had been under pressure from HeyDude’s struggling performance in recent months, losing nearly a third of their value after the brand posted a steep 17% sales decline in Q3 with company executives warning of further pain ahead.

Crocs have also made headlines in recent months as some US schools look to ban the shoes, calling them “safety hazards” amid a frequency of injuries, especially when kids fail to put the footwear in “sport mode” (by wearing the so-called safety strap on the back of the shoe).

The stock’s post-earnings surge marks a near-full rebound, though, reversing much of its 19% year-to-date decline. Shares had gotten a boost through much of last year from a lasting pandemic-era lean toward comfy shoes, plus popularity amongst teens after partnerships with A-list celebs like Justin Bieber, Post Malone, and Sydney Sweeney.

Looking ahead, the shoemaker said it expects revenue to grow between 2% to 2.5% in 2025.