Adidas plans to propose a flat dividend for 2023 and announces that growth this year will focus on the second half. The German sportswear and shoe manufacturer announced on Wednesday that it will propose a dividend of EUR 0.70 per share.

Additionally, the company plans to return to its policy of distributing annual dividends to shareholders in the amount of 30% to 50% of the net income from ongoing operations. This follows a net loss of 75 million euros (82 million US dollars) last year compared to a profit of 612 million euros in 2022. As announced in January, revenue fell by 5% to 21.43 billion euros.

The company decided not to write off the majority of its Yeezy inventory and announced in January that it intends to sell it at least at the original price instead. On Wednesday, Adidas announced that the company's core business would grow at a double-digit rate in the second half of the year. Growth in the first half of the year will be impacted by measures to reduce what Adidas calls excess inventory in the North American market.

"We are likely to see some growth already in the first quarter, but I expect that the growth will be stronger in the second half of the year. We still have a lot of work ahead of us, but I am confident that we are on the right track," said Chief Executive Bjorn Gulden. The company is undergoing transformation after the failure of its partnership with rapper Kanye West, known as Ye, and the decline in profitability. Gulden added that adidas has managed to reduce its inventory by nearly EUR 1.5 billion and that the inventories, except for the USA, are at a healthy level.

In contrast, a currency-adjusted sales decline in the mid-single-digit range is expected for 2024 in North America. However, double-digit growth is anticipated in Greater China and Latin America. High single-digit growth compared to the previous year is also expected in Europe, Japan, and South Korea. Adidas reaffirmed that the sale of Yeezy inventory will not contribute to operating profit this year. As previously announced, Adidas confirmed its forecast for 2024 with an operating profit of around EUR 500 million and a currency-adjusted sales growth in the mid-single-digit range.