Bang & Olufsen, the Struer-based Danish consumer electronics company, released some of its key figures early on Tuesday this week and moved its quarterly financial report to a week earlier than originally scheduled.
The initial release had been planned for Wednesday 7th October. However, after accidentally leaking several key figures to Børsen, it was forced to change its planned release dates.
This comes after several years of poor performance and a turbulent replacement of senior leadership.
The numbers reveal that the company saw growth in its revenue, a significant increase in its gross margin, a strengthening of its free cash flow, however, it has continued operating at a loss.
Massive faux pas
The leak occurred when Holm Kommunikation, a PR company hired by Bang & Olufsen, accidentally sent the figures to Børsen.
The leak included several key financial figures as well as communication briefings for Chief Executive Officer Gianfilippo Testa and Nikolaj Wendelboe who serves as Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, and Chief Operating Officer.
An answer prepared for the CEO read, “When a brand has existed for 100 years, it has naturally been through a lot: both good times and challenging periods. My focus is on one thing: looking forward. What we need now is a clear and consistent direction that we stick to.”
Due to the nature of the leaked figures and the fact it could have impacted the share prices, the company has had to move its releases to earlier than planned.
Better figures than last year
Bang & Olufsen saw a growth in revenue of 2.2% in the first three months of financial year 2026/2027 from 517 million Kroner to 530 million. This compared to a 4% decline in the first three months of last financial year.
The company can also report that it has turned a previously negative free cash flow of 135 million Danish Kroner to a positive 6 million Kroner. The gross margin has also increased by 0.7 percentage points to a record high of 59.4%.
These figures for the first quarter have led the company to maintain their expectations of between 1% and 5% growth for this fiscal year.
Still dark clouds in the sky
Not all of the data is however great for the company. It continues operating at a loss. And the stand-out bad news story revolves around on-the-go products: one of the company’s key priorities.
This includes headphones and portable speakers. Sales in this category decreased by 19% compared to the previous year.
In the planned communication strategy leaked to Børsen, this fall was attributed to a decrease of engagement around Amazon Prime Day.
The proposed line said, “We have deliberately scaled back campaigns on the platform. We prefer selling fewer products at the right price over chasing sales volume through discounts.”