Stefano Caroti previously held a number of senior executive positions at Nike in Sales, Product, Marketing and General Management. Most recently, Stefano was Vice President for EMEA Commerce at Nike’s European headquarters in the Netherlands, where he was responsible for the entire wholesale and retail business in the EMEA region, managing a Euro 4 billion business. Stefano Caroti is Italian, married and has two children. He graduated at Middlebury College in Vermont, USA und started his career in the sporting goods industry in 1985 in Germany.

In addition, as of January 1st, 2008 Antonio Bertone (35), currently Group Functional Director Brand and Marketing at PUMA, will be appointed as Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) and Reiner Seiz (44), currently General Manager Global Sourcing and Logistics at PUMA, will be appointed as Chief Supply Chain Officer (CSO). In their new positions as Deputy Members of the Board of Management both of them will continue to be in charge of their current responsibilities.

Antonio Bertone started working for PUMA’s product and marketing departments in 1994, and since then has become instrumental in the repositioning of the PUMA brand. His creative vision resulted in the introduction of many of PUMA’s Sportlifestyle collections. Today, Antonio Bertone oversees PUMA’s global brand and marketing initiatives.

Reiner Seiz joined PUMA in 1989 in the design and development department and took over his first sourcing assignments in 1993. Today Reiner Seiz is responsible for leading the PUMA World Cat sourcing organizations and with his excellent knowledge of the global sourcing market he managed to build a global sourcing structure and a network of suppliers.

Jochen Zeitz, Chairman and CEO: “We are delighted to welcome Stefano Caroti to the PUMA team. Stefano brings excellent international sales know-how and strong management skills to take on this newly created function as CCO within the Board of Management. With the announcement of Antonio Bertone and Reiner Seiz as Deputy Members of the Board of Management, two additional key functional areas are now well-represented in PUMA’s top management team and will therefore support and strengthen the PUMA brand and company. All three will strongly contribute in supporting PUMA’s global expansion strategy.”

Stefano Caroti, future member of the Board of Management: “I very much look forward to my appointment as Member of the Board of Management and will put in a lot of effort and investment into the new position to capitalize the major opportunities in front of us. I am excited to be working with the PUMA team and contribute to the continued growth of PUMA.”

With this expansion PUMA has successfully completed the re-organization of the Board of Management as part of PUMA’s Phase IV strategy under the leadership of the Chairman and CEO Jochen Zeitz. The current function of the PUMA Group Executive Committee will be terminated.

On a total of 84 pages, PUMA presents its extensive activities in the area of social standards, environment protection and restricted substances. The Sportlifestyle company clearly outlines the continuous improvement of S.A.F.E. (Social Accountability and Fundamental Environmental Standards)-activities. Their aim is not only to generate fair working conditions, protect the environment and manufacture ecologically compatible products. An active dialog with different stakeholders (and pressure groups) is also of great importance to PUMA.

TÜV Rheinland certifies that “PUMA has developed a significant and operational management system for environmental and social aspects.” Results of the examination confirm that the Sportlifestyle company successfully implemented the “Code of Conduct”, the “Code of Ethics” and the “Handbook for Environmental Issues”. Those guidelines are generally binding, not only for all PUMA headquarters but also for the 369 independent suppliers and manufacturers named in the report.

The independent environmental organization Greenpeace confirms that PUMA’s commitment sets standards. Greenpeace has checked different companies regarding eco friendliness of their products, ranking them from red to green. After examination of PUMA’s product range, the Sportlifestyle company has obtained the best category “green”. Fair Labor Organization (FLA) is in agreement with this positive appraisal: PUMA has been accredited this year as full member for the first time. FLA is a non-profit organization dedicated to improve working and production conditions. As accredited member, the Sportlifestyle company thoroughly supports the strict guidelines and unannounced audits by FLA.

Jochen Zeitz, CEO and Chairman, PUMA AG: “We are pleased that PUMA’s social and ecological commitment has been recognized not only by analysts and experts, but also by independent organizations such as TÜV Rheinland and Greenpeace. Through responsible and sustainable corporate governance, we want to ensure that our aim to be the most desirable Sportlifestyle company is not only oriented towards economical, but also towards social and environmental criteria.”

In the course of its transparent ecological and social policy, PUMA’s social audits have been seen off by a journalist for the first time, describing his experiences in the Sustainability Report. Bernhard Bartsch, Asia-correspondent for German newspaper Berliner Zeitung and magazine brand eins, characterizes visits of suppliers in Turkey, Vietnam and China. He portrays how PUMA auditors inspect the realization of safety regulations in China or compliance of adequate wages in Vietnamese factories.

Corporate social responsibility is getting ever more important in today’s global business community. For many years now PUMA has continuously improved its S.A.F.E. activities to ensure high social and environmental standards along its entire supply chain. In order to maximise transparency in this sector the company publishes sustainability reports.

The Sustainability Report can be downloaded from PUMA’s website: www.about.puma.com

Highlights Q4

• Consolidated sales increase more than 10%
• Gross profit margin on a high level
• EBIT up 21%
• EPS at € 2.40 versus € 2.03

Highlights January – December

• Global brand sales increase more than 3%
• Consolidated sales up almost 5%
• Gross profit margin increases significantly to more than 52%
• EBIT at € 372 million, representing 15.7% of sales
• EPS at € 16.80 compared to € 16.39

Outlook 2008

• Future orders up almost 10%
• Management expects sales and earnings increase in 2008

The year 2007 was a year with only a few events. Nevertheless, most of the targets set were reached and even exceeded in many areas. The Company successfully strengthened its positioning as a desirable sportlifestyle brand, which is as well reflected in the improved gross profit margin.

In 2007, worldwide brand sales were up 3.4% currency adjusted, amounting to € 2.7 billion. On a comparable basis, consolidated sales climbed by 4.7% to € 2.4 billion. The gross profit margin jumped by 170 basis points to over 52%, and operating profit was above last year’s, totalling € 372.0 million. Earnings per share increased from € 16.39 to € 16.80.

Highlights 4th Quarter 2007

In Q4, consolidated sales increased significantly by 10.3% to € 504.5 million on a currency-adjusted basis. Footwear rose by 7.0% to € 277.2 million, Apparel by 14.8% to € 194.7 million and Accessories by 14.0% to € 32.6 million. By regions, EMEA sales increased by 19.9% and Asia/Pacific went up by 14.3% whereas sales in the Americas decreased by 3.3% as expected.

The gross profit margin was at 51.6% 390 basis points up from last year’s quarter. SG&A increased from 38.7% to 40.3% of sales. EBIT rose significantly by 20.7% to € 52.4 million and earnings per share from € 2.03 to € 2.40.

Highlights January – December 2007

Global brand sales growth of more than 3%

PUMA brand sales rose currency-adjusted by 3.4% to € 2.7 billion. Due to the continuing weakness of currencies, particularly of the US Dollar, brand sales in Euros were slightly below last year’s level. By segments, Footwear sales climbed on a comparable basis by 1.9% to € 1,477.9 million, Apparel by 5.7% to € 998.7 million, and Accessories by 3.7% to € 262.2 million.

Licensed business

License sales declined by 3.8% to € 365.3 million on a currency neutral basis. The decrease is attributable to expired licence agreements. On a comparative basis, licence sales rose by approximately 4%. As of 2008, the Korean market will be serviced through the fully-owned subsidiary and will therefore be converted from a licence business into a consolidated business.

Overall, royalty and commission income from license sales amounted to € 35.6 million. This corresponds to 9.7% of license sales compared to 9.6% in the previous year.

Consolidated sales up almost 5%

PUMA succeeded in increasing its consolidated sales for the thirteenth consecutive year, including ten years of double-digit growth. In the 2007 financial year, currency adjusted sales rose by 4.7% to a total of € 2,373.5 million. Currency effects impacted negatively in Euro terms. The currency adjusted sales in the Footwear segment posted a 2.1% increase to € 1,387.8 million. The Apparel segment grew by 8.6% to € 827.3 million. In the Accessories segment sales were up by 7.8% to € 158.3 million.

Expansion of own retail operations is on schedule

Expansion of the Group’s own retailing activities progressed as planned during the 2007 financial year. An additional 25 PUMA concept stores were opened worldwide in 2007, resulting in 116 concept stores at the end of 2007, including two stores operated by licensee. Sales from the Company’s own retail operations grew by 18.0% to € 406.4 million in 2007. The share in consolidated sales rose from 14.5% to 17.1%.

Significant increase in gross profit margin

The desirability of the brand is reflected, in particular, in the gross profit margin. In FY2007, the gross profit margin grew strongly by 170 basis points to 52.3%. In absolute figures, gross profit was up by 3.5%, rising to € 1,241.7 million. According to product segments, the Footwear gross profit margin increased from 50.3% to 52.3% and Apparel from 50.7% to 52.2%. Accessories reached a gross profit margin of 52.8% versus 53.3%.

Investments in the brand continue as planned

Operating expenses rose by 3.5% to € 859.2 million in the 2007 financial year. The cost ratio increased from 35.0% to 36.2% of sales owing to continued scheduled brand investments and infrastructure investments.

Investments in Marketing/Retail totalled € 424.9 million. The cost ratio rose from 17.7% to 17.9% of sales, whereby marketing expenses declined in comparison with the previous year while expenses incurred for retail operations saw a scheduled increase. Product development and design expenses climbed to € 57.5 million, and at 2.4% of sales, remained constant in comparison with the previous year. Other selling, general and administrative expenses rose to € 376.7 million or from 14.9% to 15.9% of sales. The total includes one-off expenses and start-up costs for the new subsidiary in Korea.

EBIT above last year

Operating profit (EBIT) climbed to € 372.0 million from € 368.0 million in 2006. As a percentage of sales, this corresponds to an operating margin of 15.7%, compared to 15.5%.

Like-for-like, the financial result increased strongly from € 6.0 million to € 10.5 million. The financial result includes interest income of € 21.2 million and interest expenses of € 5.3 million. The net interest result corresponds to an average rate of return of 3.9%, compared to 3.1% in the previous year.

Earnings before taxes (EBT) reached € 382.6 million versus € 374.0 million in the previous year. As a percentage of sales this corresponds to a return of 16.1%, compared to 15.8%.

Tax expenses rose to € 110.9 million. The average tax rate was 29.0%, compared to 28.9% in the previous year.

Net Earnings

Net earnings improved by 2.2% to € 269.0 million. This corresponds to a net return of 11.3%, compared to 11.1% in the previous year. Earnings per share amounted to € 16.80, compared to € 16.39, and the diluted earnings per share were € 16.78, compared to € 16.31.

Net Assets and Financial Position

Equity ratio at 62%

As of December 31, 2007 shareholders’ equity rose by 10.1% to € 1,154.8 million. The equity ratio reached 62.0% after 61.2% in the previous year. The balance sheet total climbed by 8.6% from € 1,714.8 million to € 1,863.0 million.

Working Capital

Trade receivables grew by 4.2% to € 389.6 million due to the sales increase in the fourth quarter (+5.0%). Inventories increased by 2.6% to € 373.6 million. The increase is attributable to the order position for deliveries in the first months of the 2008 financial year. The inventory structure was improved significantly in the course of the year, as previously announced. Taking short-term liabilities into account, working capital was € 406.5 million and accounted for 17.1% of sales, after 16.9% in the previous year.

Capex/Cashflow

Cash used for investing activity dropped significantly to € 93.5 million. The decrease is due mostly to the cash used for regional expansion recorded in the previous year. The expansion of PUMA’s own retail operations and current investments account for € 103.4 million, according to plan.

The free cashflow (before acquisition) grew strongly by 138.3% to € 218.3 million. As a percentage of sales, the free cashflow more than doubled from 3.9% to 9.2%.

Regional Development

In spite of the fewer events in 2007 compared to the previous year, solid growth was achieved in the EMEA region. The currency adjusted sales rose by 7.8% to € 1,235.3 million. Nearly all countries in this region contributed to the growth. The EMEA region’s share in consolidated sales rose to 52.0%, compared to 48.9% in the previous year. By product segments, Footwear sales increased by 5.6%, Apparel by 11.6%, and Accessories by 7.4%, on a comparative basis. The gross profit margin reached 53.9% after 53.8% in the previous year. The operating margin (EBIT) accounted for 21.2% of sales, compared to 22.0% in the previous year.

Currency adjusted sales in America declined by 4.3% and amounted to € 641.2 million. The share in consolidated sales decreased from 30.6% to 27.0%. This is largely related to adaptation of the business with a key account customer in the USA, who in the past years had recorded strong growth in sales, and a constant moderate environment in US shopping centers (malls). As a result of these developments, the US market, which is the largest in the region, declined after several years of double-digit growth; in 2007 currency-adjusted sales decreased by 9.5% to a total of USD 561.1 million.

According to product segments in the region, Footwear posted a 5.7% decrease and Apparel declined by 2.6%. Sales in Accessories were up by 11.4%. The gross profit margin grew from 46.1% to 50.7% owing to a significant improvement in the USA. Realization of the announced streamlining of the distribution structure thus impacted very positively on the gross profit margin. The operating margin was 17.6%, compared to 17.4% in the previous year.

In the Asia/Pacific region, currency adjusted sales grew significantly by 10.1% to € 497.0 million. China, in particular, contributed to this positive result. Total region increased its share in consolidated sales from 20.5% to 20.9%. According to product segments, Footwear showed a currency adjusted increase by 11.3%, Apparel by 10.0%, and Accessories by 6.1%. The gross profit margin increased from 49.8% in the previous year to 50.6%. The operating margin was 20.4%, compared to 21.9% in the previous year.

Dividend

For financial year 2007, the Board of Management and the Supervisory Board will propose at the Annual Meeting on April 22, 2008 that the dividend be increased by 10% to € 2.75 per share. Hence, the dividend pay-out ratio moved up from 15.2% to 16.3%, in line with the announced gradual increase during the Phase IV.

In January and February 2007 the Company repurchased a total 150,000 treasury stock or 0.9% of the subscribed capital. The acquisition costs totalled € 41.6 million. With effect from April 10, 2007, the total of 1,270,000 own shares held up to that time were cancelled.

Based on a resolution of the Shareholders’ meeting of April 11, 2007, the Company was again authorized to acquire own shares of up to ten percent of the capital stock by September 1, 2008. The Company made use of this authorization and repurchased a total of 125,000 PUMA shares, or 0.8% % of the subscribed capital, up to the balance sheet date. The amount invested to this end totals € 34.7 million. The share buy back program will be continued in 2008.

Outlook 2008

Significant increase in orders

For the twelfth consecutive time, orders on hand posted growth as of the year-end. At year-end 2007, orders climbed currency adjusted by 9.8% to € 1,187.7 million, due mostly to deliveries for the first and second quarter of 2008.

By product segments, currency adjusted orders for Footwear went up by 4.7% to € 721.1 million, Apparel orders climbed by 19.9% to € 397.7 million, followed by Accessories, which rose by 13.6% to € 68.9 million.

In the EMEA regions, currency adjusted orders were up by 10.2% to € 712.0 million. Orders in the America region dropped by 3.2% to € 241.3 million on a comparable basis. The decrease is due exclusively to the US market. Orders in the Asia/Pacific region rose by 26.0% to € 234.4 million due to a significant increase in the Chinese market, in particular.

Sales and profit increase expected in 2008

Due to the positive orders position, Management expects a currency adjusted single-digit sales growth for the fiscal year 2008.

EBIT is also expected to increase compared to 2007. The operating margin, however, is expected to fall below previous year’s level because of the major sports events and related marketing expenses as well as planned further expansion of the Company’s own retail activities. The tax rate is expected to be at last year’s level.

Jochen Zeitz, CEO: “Although PUMA faced a challenging year, we did not only meet most of our expectations in 2007, but even exceeded them in many points. PUMA had an excellent and successful start into the extraordinary sports year 2008 by winning the African Cup of Nations through Egypt’s win, securing a strong brand visibility on the pitch as the leading equipment supplier. We are determined to make use of all opportunities and chances that offer further growth and we will continue to invest and to strengthen the brand’s as well as the company’s desirability in the long run.”

Highlights Q1:

• Consolidated sales up almost 7%
• Strong gross profit margin, up 120 basis points to 53.4%
• Brand investments continue according to plan
• EBIT at € 126 million representing almost 19% of sales versus 21% last year
• EPS at € 5.76 compared to € 6.02

Outlook 2008:

• Orders up currency neutral 12% to nearly € 1.2 billion
• In a challenging market, management confirms a single-digit sales increase on a currency neutral basis

Sales and Earnings Development

Global branded sales

PUMA’s worldwide branded sales, which include consolidated and license sales, rose currency neutral 0.5%. In reporting terms, branded sales reached € 741.2 million versus € 762.1 million due to the strength of the Euro against most of the related currencies.
Footwear sales were down by 4.6% to € 404.1 million. Apparel was almost on last year’s level totaling
€ 246.9 million, and Accessories improved by 36.0% to € 90.1 million.

Licensed business

On a comparable basis, licensed sales were flat. However, due to the take-back of the former license market Korea, the licensed business was down by 35.6% currency neutral to € 67.8 million. Based on the remaining licensed business the company realized a royalty and commission income of € 7.1 million in the first quarter versus € 9.7 million in the prior year.

Consolidated sales up almost 7%

In Q1, consolidated sales grew 6.6% currency neutral (2.7% in Euro terms) to € 673.3 million. Sales in Footwear were almost flat versus last year representing € 394.2 million, with all regions achieving satisfactory performance except the US. Apparel sales improved by 18.5% to € 231.8 million and Accessories by 16.5% to € 47.3 million and all regions contributed with double-digit growth.

Gross profit at 53.4%

In Q1, gross profit margin reached 53.4% compared to 52.2% last year. The Footwear margin was up from 52.1% to 53.4% and Apparel increased from 51.9% to 53.4%. Accessories reported 53.7% compared to 54.9% last year.

SG&A

In total, SG&A rose 9.9% to € 227.8 million in Q1 2008. As a percentage of sales, the cost ratio was at 33.8% versus 31.6% last year.

Marketing/Retail expenses were up by 20.6% to € 120.4 million that was due to higher marketing investments and the Retail expansion as planned. As a percentage of sales, this represents a cost ratio of 17.9% compared to 15.2% in the previous year. Product development and design expenses were down by 11.4% to € 11.6 million, or from 2.0% to 1.7% of sales, mainly due to currency effects. Other selling, general and administrative expenses increased 1.6% to € 95.9 million but declined from 14.4% to 14.2% of sales.

EBIT

EBIT amounts to € 125.8 million versus € 134.8 million last year. As a percentage of sales this relates to a EBIT margin of 18.7% versus 20.6%.
The tax ratio was 28.9% versus 29.1% in last year’s quarter.

Net Earnings/Earnings per share € 5.76

In Q1, net earnings reached € 90.1 million versus € 96.6 million last year. The net return amounts to 13.4% versus 14.7%. Earnings per share were € 5.76 versus € 6.02 last year. Diluted earnings per share were calculated at € 5.76 compared with € 6.01.

Net Assets and Financial Position

Equity ratio above 60%

As of March 31, 2008, total assets climbed by 0.8% to € 1,811.5 million and the equity ratio reached 60.4% after 60.9% in the previous year.

Working capital Inventories grew 5.9% to € 364.5 million, which is in line with or even better than the order growth end of the quarter. Accounts receivables were down 2.5%, reaching € 506.2 million, versus a sales growth of 2.7% during Q1. Total working capital at the end of March totaled € 521.1 million compared to € 496.1 million last year.

Capex/Cashflow

For Capex, the company spent € 24.3 million in Q1 versus € 14,8 million in last year’s quarter, whereas € 6.4 million were related to payment on accounts. In addition, € 16.6 million (last year: € 1.6 million) were financed for acquisition cost.
Due to the mentioned investments and the seasonal higher working capital requirement, free cashflow amounts to € -49.7 million compared to € -9.8 million last year. Excluding investment for acquisitions free cashflow was € -33.0 million versus € -8.2 million.

Cash position

Total cash end of March stood at € 357.2 versus € 402.4 million last year. Bank debts were up from € 63.5 million to € 67.1 million. As a result, the net cash position decreased from € 338.9 million to € 290.0 million year over year whereby € 107.7 million (last year: € 41.6 million) were spent for the share buyback program in the first quarter.

Share Buyback

PUMA purchased another 450,000 of its own shares during the first three months. At quarter-end, 575,000 shares were held as treasury stock in the balance sheet, accounting for 3.6% of total share capital.

Regional Development

Sales in the EMEA-region increased currency adjusted 9.7% reaching € 391.1 million versus € 360.9 million last year, with growth in all categories. The region now represents 58.1% of consolidated sales. Gross profit margin increased to 54.7% compared to 53.7% last year. Orders were up 10.9% currency adjusted to € 644.8 million.

Sales in the Americas were down currency neutral 5.6% to € 148.7 million. Footwear was below last year but accessories and apparel were up double-digit in the quarter. The region now accounts for 22.1% of consolidated sales. Gross profit margin further improved from 49.7% to strong 50.4%. The order book reported a currency neutral increase of 3.2%. In the US market, sales were down 14.2% to $ 134.1 million, affected by the continued moderate environment in the mall-based business. Orders for US end-of-quarter declined 20.8%.

Asia/Pacific reported the strongest growth with solid performance in all categories. Sales increased 13.3% currency neutral to € 133.5 million. The total region accounts for 19.8% of sales. Gross profit margin was strongly up by 160 basis points to 53.0%. Order books reached € 289.7 million, an increase of 23.7% over last year.

Outlook 2008

Future orders up 12% to nearly € 1.2 billion

In comparable terms, consolidated orders were up by 12.1%, or in reporting terms, orders increased 6.5% to € 1,170.4 million. Like-for-like, Footwear was up by 10.2% to € 677.9 million, Apparel improved 14.3% to € 418.2 million and Accessories 18.3% to € 74.3 million.>

Management confirms a single-digit sales increase on a currency neutral basis

Management reaffirms a currency adjusted single-digit sales growth for the fiscal year 2008 despite a continued difficult consumer environment.

During the exceptional sport year 2008 PUMA continues with its marketing investments as planed in order to support the long-term growth potential. The brand investments could affect 2008’s EBIT margin. In a volatile market environment it is difficult to outline the final impact on profitability.

Jochen Zeitz, CEO: “In the midst of an overall economic environment that continues to be challenging, PUMA has shown resiliency in both growth and desirability. Despite a difficult 2008 outlook, we will continue to invest in our planned initiatives to capitalize on major opportunities with global sporting events and fully maximize PUMA’s long-term potential.”

Highlights Q2

• Consolidated sales increase more than 11% currency-adjusted
• Gross profit margin remains above 52%
• EBIT up 2% to € 62 million
• EPS at € 2.98 versus € 2.82

Highlights First Half-Year

• Global brand sales at € 1.4 billion
• Consolidated sales up almost 9% currency-adjusted
• Gross profit margin at 53%
• EBIT at € 188 million
• EPS at € 8.74 compared to € 8.84

Outlook 2008

• Orders up almost 9% currency neutral to € 1,072 million
• Management confirms a single-digit sales increase on a currency neutral basis

Jochen Zeitz, CEO: ”PUMA’s performance in the second quarter improved at a steady pace, ahead of the Q1 progression. Thanks to our scheduled brand investments, consolidated sales were up 11% in the quarter, driven by a solid growth in all regions and categories. I remain confident in PUMA’s ability to achieve another year of top-line growth despite an ongoing difficult global consumer environment.”

Sales and Earnings Development

Global brand sales at € 1.4 billion in first half

PUMA’s brand sales, which include consolidated sales and license sales, reached € 628.9 million during Q2, a currency-adjusted increase of 5.4% or 1.1% in Euro terms.

During the first six months, brand sales rose 2.7% currency-adjusted, reaching € 1,370.0 million versus € 1,384.0 million last year. Footwear sales slightly declined 1.3% to € 735.7 million. Apparel improved by 1.5% to € 472.9 million and Accessories grew strongly by 32.2% to € 161.5 million.

Licensed business

Due to the take-back of the former license market Korea, the licensed business decreased in Q2 by 33.2% currency-adjusted to € 52.1 million and by 34.6% to € 119.9 million after six months.

Based on the licensed sales, the company realized a royalty and commission income of € 6.4 million in Q2 versus € 8.8 million in the prior year’s quarter and € 13.4 million versus € 18.5 million year-to-date.

Consolidated sales up almost 9% after six months

In the second quarter, consolidated sales grew 11.2% currency-adjusted, or 6.3% in Euro terms to € 576.8 million. This shows an improvement as compared to Q1 this year, despite a tough comp basis due to last year’s early shipments. On a currency neutral basis, Footwear was up 7.0% to € 325.1 million, Apparel improved by 14.6% to € 206.3 million and Accessories by a strong 30.3% to € 45.4 million.

Sales in the first six months were up 8.7% currency-adjusted to € 1,250.1 million. In segments, Footwear increased 2.8% to € 719.4 million, Apparel 16.6% to € 438.1 million and Accessories 22.9% to € 92.7 million.

Gross profit margin at 53% in H1

The gross profit margin further improved by 30 basis points to 52.5% in Q2. After six months, gross profit margin was up to 53.0%, an increase of 80 basis points. In the first half, Footwear margin was up from 52.1% to 53.4% and the Apparel margins increased from 52.1% to 52.5%. Accessories reported a margin of 52.1% versus 53.8% last year.

SG&A

Total SG&A expenses increased in Q2 by 5.7% to € 233.1 million and by 7.7% to € 460.9 million during the first half. As a percentage of sales, the cost ratio decreased from 40.6% to 40.4% in Q2 and increased from 35.7% to 36.9% in H1. The increase in cost ratio is due to continuous investments into the brand according to budget.

For the first half, marketing/retail expenses were up by 19.5% to € 247.9 million as planned. Product development and design expenses were down by 13.4% to € 24.8 million or to 2.0% of sales. Other selling, general and administrative expenses were down 1.9% to € 188.3 million or from 16.0% to 15.1% of sales.

EBIT at € 188 million in H1

In Q2, EBIT was up by 2.1% to € 62.3 million, showing a clear improvement versus the first quarter. After six months, EBIT reached € 188.1 million compared to € 195.9 million last year. The EBIT margin was 10.8% versus 11.2% and 15.0% versus 16.3% respectively. The tax ratio was calculated at 28.5% versus 28.7% during the six month period.

Net earnings/Earnings per share

Net earnings increased by 0.9% to € 45.6 million in Q2. In the first half net earnings were down by 4.3% to € 135.7 million. The net return amounts to 7.9% versus 8.3% and 10.9% versus 11.8% respectively.

Earnings per share in Q2 were up 5.7% from € 2.82 to € 2.98. Year-to-date earnings per share were € 8.74 compared to € 8.84. Diluted earnings per share were calculated at € 2.98 compared with € 2.81 and € 8.74 versus € 8.82 respectively.

Net Assets and Financial Position

Equity ratio at 61%

As of June 30, 2008, total assets decreased by 2.7% to € 1,780.8 million and the equity ratio reached strong 60.7% after 60.3% in the previous year.

Working capital

Inventories grew 7.8% to € 419.5 million and receivables were up 4.4%, reaching € 473.6 million. Total working capital at the end of June totaled € 552.1 million versus € 516.4 million last year, an increase of 6.9%.

Capex/Cashflow For Capex, the company spent € 50.6 million versus € 30.8 million last year. The higher investments are mainly related to payment on accounts. In addition, € 19.7 million were financed for acquisitions compared to € 4.9 million.
Free Cashflow excluding acquisitions amounted to € -23.6 million versus € 69.4 million last year.

Cash position Total cash end of June stood at € 288.2 million versus € 443.1 million last year. Bank debts were up from € 59.8 million to € 65.6 million. As a result, the net cash position decreased from € 383.3 million to € 222.6 million year-over-year mainly due to the investments in share buy-backs.

Own Shares

PUMA purchased another 125,000 of its own shares during Q2. As of June, 700,000 shares were held as treasury stock in the balance sheet, accounting for 4.4% of total share capital, a total investment of € 171.4 million.

Regional Development

Sales in the EMEA region reached € 299.6 million in Q2, a currency-adjusted increase of 7.6%. Year-to-date, sales increased by 8.8% to € 690.7 million. The region now represents 55.3% of consolidated sales. Gross profit margin increased 60 basis points to 54.5%. Orders on hand were up 3.5% to € 576.2 million.

Q2 sales in the Americas were up 13.9% currency-adjusted reaching € 146.7 million. First half sales increased currency-adjusted 3.2% and were € 295.5 million. The region now accounts for 23.6% of consolidated sales. The gross profit margin was at 48.9% compared to 49.6% last year. The order volume was up by 14.7% to € 246.2 million. Sales in the US-market were down only 0.9% in Q2 and 8.2% after six months. Sales development improved versus Q1 2008 and outperformed the trend in the order books. Orders for the US end of June improved versus end of March, being now at $ 179.8 million or 14.8% below last year.

In Q2, the Asia/Pacific region increased sales currency-adjusted by 17.0% to € 130.5 million and 15.1% after six months reaching € 263.9 million. The total region accounts for 21.1% of sales. The gross profit margin was strongly up by 240 basis points and reached 53.6%. Orders on hand end of June were up 15.8% and totaled € 249.1 million.

Outlook 2008

Orders up almost 9% currency-adjusted

Total orders on hand as of June increased 8.6% currency-adjusted and totaled € 1,071.5 million, representing a growth of 3.9% in reporting terms.

In terms of product segments, Footwear orders were up by 9.3% to € 638.4 million. Apparel orders increased 7.0% to € 372.1 million and Accessories 11.5% to € 61.0 million.

Management confirms a single-digit sales increase on a currency neutral basis

Management reaffirms a currency-adjusted single-digit sales growth for the fiscal year 2008 despite a continued difficult consumer environment.

PUMA will continue with its marketing investments as planned in order to explore the long-term growth potential. The brand investments could affect 2008’s EBIT margin. In a currently volatile market environment it remains difficult to outline the final impact on profitability.

Highlights Q3

• Consolidated sales up more than 9% currency adjusted reaching € 713 million
• Gross profit margin remains on a high level at 53.6%
• EBIT reached € 125 million, up versus last yearEPS increase 4.5% from € 5.56 to € 5.81

Highlights January – September

• Global brand sales above € 2.1 billion
• Consolidated sales up almost 9% currency adjusted
• Gross profit margin above 53%
• EBIT at € 313 million versus € 320 million last year
• EPS at € 14.55 compared to € 14.40

Outlook 2008

• Orders increase 5% to € 1,163 million
• Management raises full-year sales guidance

Jochen Zeitz, CEO: ” Despite the very challenging economic situation and sluggish retail environment, PUMA was able to post another quarter of sales growth. Due to the year to date performance and our order books, we raise our sales guidance for our full-year outlook from a single-digit to a mid to high single-digit currency adjusted sales growth.”

Sales and Earnings Development

Global brand sales

PUMA’s brand sales, which include consolidated sales and license sales, reached € 778.6 million during Q3, thus a currency adjusted increase of 5.9% or 3.3% in Euro terms.

During the nine month period ending September, global brand sales increased currency adjusted 3.8% to € 2,148.6 million. Footwear sales increased 2.4% to € 1,158.1 million and Accessories 28.2% to € 252.6 million. Apparel sales decreased 0.4% to € 737.9 million.

Consolidated sales up 9% currency adjusted

Consolidated sales in Q3 grew 9.2% currency adjusted to € 712.7 million.

By segments, Footwear increased 13.1% to € 412.8 million, Apparel 1.8% to € 245.3 million and Accessories 16.7% to € 54.6 million.

Sales after nine months were up 8.8% currency adjusted to € 1,962.9 million. Footwear improved 6.3% to € 1,132.2 million, Apparel 10.8% to € 683.4 million and Accessories 20.5% to € 147.3 million.

Gross profit margin remains at a high level

In Q3, the gross profit margin increased another 60 basis points reaching 53.6%. After nine months, the gross profit margin remained on a high level at 53.2%. Footwear margin increased from 52.3% to 53.1% and Apparel margin from 52.5% to 53.3%. Accessories reported 53.3% versus 53.9% last year.

SG&A

Total SG&A expenses increased in Q3 by 9.5% to € 249.7 million and by 8.3% to € 710.6 million after nine months. As a percentage of sales, the cost ratio increased from 34.0% to 35.0% during Q3 and from 35.1% to 36.2% after nine months as expected. The higher cost ratio is due to the scheduled brand investments in marketing and retail.

For the nine month period, marketing/retail expenses increased 17.9% and accounted for € 371.1 million, representing a percentage of sales increase from 16.8% to 18.9%. Product development and design expenses were down 12.7% to € 37.6 million or from 2.3% to 1.9% of sales. Other selling, general and administrative expenses were up only 1.2% to € 301.9 million, which reflects a decline from 16.0% to 15.4% as a percentage of sales.

EBIT

In Q3, EBIT increased by 1.0% to € 125.0 million. Due to the aforementioned brand investments, EBIT for the nine months period reported € 313.2 million compared to € 319.7 million. Nevertheless, a strong EBIT margin of 17.5% (LY: 18.5%) and 16.0% (LY: 17.1%) respectively was achieved.

The tax ratio was calculated at 29.0% versus 29.5% in the quarter and 28.7% versus 29.0% in the nine month period.

Net earnings/Earnings per share

Net earnings in Q3 were on last year’s level and totaled € 89.0 million. Due to the brand investments, net earnings were down by 2.7% to € 224.7 million year-to-date. Net return reached 12.5% versus 13.3% and 11.4% versus 12.3% respectively.

Based on average outstanding shares, earnings per share were up 4.5% from € 5.56 to € 5.81 in Q3. Year-to-date earnings per share improved from € 14.40 to € 14.55.

Net Assets and Financial Position

Equity ratio above 62%

Total assets were down by 2.5% to € 1,906.6 million as of September 30, 2008 compared to September in the previous year. The equity ratio further strengthened from 60.0% to 62.3%.

Working Capital

Inventories grew 17.3% to € 432.0 million and include the new consolidation in Korea. Receivables were up 6.1%, reaching € 532.5 million and in line with top-line growth over the last months. Total working capital at the end of September increased 19.4% and totaled € 599.6 million, mainly due to the new consolidation and low liabilities at balance sheet date. On a like-for-like basis, working capital as percent of sales was up only slightly versus last year.

Capex/Cashflow

Total Capex for the nine months period was € 79.1 million compared to € 56.6 million last year. The higher investments are according to plan and related to payment on accounts. In addition, € 24.9 million versus € 4.9 million were financed for acquisition cost.

Free Cashflow (before acquisitions) totaled € 17.2 million versus € 154.3 million last year.

Cash position

Total cash end of September stood at € 297.3 million versus € 532.5 million last year. Bank debts were down from € 69.3 million to € 61.1 million. As a result, the net cash position decreased from € 463.2 million to € 236.2 million year-over-year mainly due to the investments in share buy-backs.

Own Shares

PUMA continued its share buy-back program and purchased another 150,000 of its own shares during Q3. As of September, 850,000 shares were held as treasury stock in the balance sheet, accounting for 5.3% of total share capital, a total investment of € 202.8 million. The shares were purchased during the period beginning November 2007 until September 2008.

Regional Development

Faced with a continued tough consumer environment, the EMEA region reported a solid growth of 4.2% currency adjusted in the quarter, reaching € 388.1 million. Year-to-date, sales increased 7.1% and totalled € 1,078.8 million. The region now accounts for 55.0% of consolidated sales. Gross profit margin showed another improvement and increased from 54.5% to 55.2%. The order book end of September was up 1.1% to € 578.4 million, whereby last years order book was strongly impacted by orders related to the 2008 sport events.

Q3 sales in the Americas were up strong 18.7% currency adjusted reaching € 184.7 million. During the nine months period, sales increased 8.6% currency adjusted to € 480.2 million. The region now accounts for 24.5% of consolidated sales. The gross profit margin was at 48.9% compared to 49.7% last year which was due to a higher distribution business in Latin America. The order volume end of September was up by favorable 20.5% to € 282.4 million.

Sales in theUSoutperformed the order books reported end of June once again and were slightly up in Q3. Sales through nine months were down only 5.4%. Orders end of September turned around and show continuing positive signs, being now up 9.1% to $ 204.7 million.

In the Asia/Pacific region, sales improved 11.9% currency adjusted to € 139.9 million in Q3 and by 14.0% to € 403.9 million year-to-date. The total region accounts for 20.6% of sales. The gross profit margin improved from 50.7% to 53.1%, mainly due to the consolidation of Korean market. Orders on hand were down 0.7% currency adjusted but were up 5.8% in Euro terms and totaled € 302.5 million.

Outlook 2008

Orders up 5%

Total orders as of September increased currency adjusted 4.7% totaling € 1,163.3 million. In Euro currency, orders were up by 5.3%. The orders are mainly for deliveries scheduled for Q4 2008 as well as Q1 2009.

In terms of product segments, Footwear orders are up currency adjusted by 6.8% to € 703.5 million, Apparel by 0.6% to € 393.1 million and Accessories by 8.4% to € 66.7 million.

Management raises full-year sales guidance

Given the results achieved so far this year as well as the order book for Q4, management raises its sales guidance for the full-year outlook from a single-digit to a mid to high single-digit currency adjusted growth.

As already announced, PUMA will continue with its brand investments as planned in order to explore the long-term growth potential.

Highlights Second Quarter:

• Consolidated sales up more than 4% in Euro terms and flat currency-adjusted
• Gross profit margin at 50%
• First impact of cost savings program: total operating expenses below last year’s level
• Operational result at € 63 million slightly above last year
• EPS at € 2.55 compared to € 2.98
• Strong improvement in inventories

Highlights First Six Months:

• Global brand sales reach almost € 1.4 billion
• Consolidated sales up almost 4% in Euro terms and slightly up currency-adjusted
• Gross profit margin remains above 51%
• Operating result before special items at € 177 million
• EPS before restructuring at € 8.51 compared to € 8.74 last year

Outlook 2009:

• Management expects that market environment remains challenging for the second half of 2009
• The implemented reengineering and restructuring program will continue as planned
• Continuing strong focus on working capital and cash flow improvement

Jochen Zeitz, CEO: “Despite an ongoing challenging market environment and the global economic recession, PUMA achieved a solid performance in the first half of 2009. The restructuring and reengineering program has already shown first effects and we will continue to strictly proceed while focusing on efficient measures to strengthen the brand and its products in the coming quarters.”

Sales and Earnings Development

Global branded sales

Sales under the PUMA brand, which include consolidated and license sales, reached € 636.5 million during the second quarter, a currency-adjusted decrease of 2.6% and an increase of 1.2% in Euro terms. Altogether, the quarter marked a solid performance in a globally challenging environment.

During the first six months, branded sales declined currency-neutral 2.9%. In Euro terms, sales increased 0.3% reaching € 1,374.1 million. On a currency-neutral basis, Footwear sales were down by 1.1% to € 745.6 million and Apparel 7.0% to € 460.9 million. Accessories increased by 1.3% to € 167.7 million.

Licensed business

The licensed business decreased in the second quarter by 32.2% currency-adjusted to € 36.2 million and by 37.5% to € 76.4 million for the first half due to the take-over of a licensee.

Based on licensed sales, the company realized a royalty and commission income of € 5.2 million in the second quarter versus € 6.4 million in the previous year’s quarter and € 10.2 million versus € 13.4 million year-to-date.

Consolidated sales

Currency-adjusted consolidated sales were flat compared to last year but increased in Euro terms a solid 4.1% to € 600.3 million. On a currency-neutral basis, Footwear was down 2.0% reaching € 330.0 million, and Apparel decreased 5.7% to € 203.8 million. Accessories improved by a strong 41.2% to € 66.4 million, which is mainly due to first time consolidations.

After six months, consolidated sales were up 0.4% on a currency-neutral basis and 3.8% in Euro terms to € 1,297.7 million. In spite of a challenging market environment, sales in the Americas region increased,whereas EMEA and Asia/Pacific were below last year’s level. In total, Footwear sales were € 727.1 million, representing a currency-neutral decrease of 1.4% and Apparel sales decreased 7.0% to € 426.3 million due to high comparables, which resulted from replica sales relating to the Football Euro Cup last year. Accessories were up a strong 49.1% to € 144.3 million.

Gross profit remains above 51%

The overall market environment paired with a change in the regional sales mix caused the reduction in gross profit margin in the second quarter from last year’s 52.5% to 50.0%. After six months, a gross profit margin of 51.1% was achieved compared to 53.0%. Footwear reported 49.7% versus 53.4%, Apparel 52.3% compared to 52.5% and Accessories increased to 54.9% versus 52.1% last year.

Operating expenses

Due to first effects from the reengineering and restructuring program, operating expenses decreased in the second quarter by 1.8% to € 242.2 million or from 42.8% to 40.3% of sales. During the first half, operating expenses increased only 1.8% to € 496.2 million, representing a cost ratio of 38.2% versus last year’s 39.0%.

Marketing/Retail expenses decreased 3.6% to € 253.1 million as last year’s Olympic Games and Euro Cup required a higher spending level. As a result, the cost ratio declined from 21.0% to 19.5% of sales. Other selling expenses increased by 14.4% to € 158.9 million, or from 11.1% to 12.2% of sales, mainly due to first time consolidations and currency impacts. Expenses for product development and design were up 14.7% to € 28.9 million, or as a percentage of sales from 2.0% to 2.2%. Other general and administration expenses were down a strong 9.3% and totaled € 55.3 million, representing 4.3% of sales versus 4.9% last year. Depreciation which is included in operating expenses increased by 16.3% to € 31.0 million due to full year effects from last year’s retail expansion.

Operational result before special items

PUMA achieved a solid operating result of € 63.1 million in the second quarter versus € 62.3 million last year. As a percentage of sales this relates to a margin of 10.5% compared to 10.8%.

After six months the operating result was down 5.9% from € 188.1 million to € 177.1 million. The operating margin stood at 13.6% compared to 15.0% last year.

Special Items – Restructuring charge

The reengineering and restructuring program that led to a one-time charge of 110 million in the first quarter will, for the most part, be finalized at the end of 2010. The program should provide for a more efficient business platform aligned to an expectedly challenging environment in the upcoming quarters.

Taking the special items into account, EBIT after six months amounted to € 67.1 million compared to € 188.1 million last year.

Financial result

The financial result reflects negative € 2.1 million for the second quarter versus an income of € 0.1 million last year. Negative € 3.7 million impacted the first half, while last year showed an income of € 1.0 million. Significantly lower interest rates and the accumulation of interest on purchase price liabilities led to this negative impact on the financial result.

Earnings

The company’s pre-tax profit (EBT) accounts for € 61.0 million in the second quarter versus € 62.4 million last year. Net earnings totaled € 38.5 million versus € 45.6 million, a decline of 15.6%. This results in earnings per share of € 2.55 compared to € 2.98 in the quarter.

Before restructuring costs, EBT accounts for € 173.4 million versus € 189.2 million for the first half and net earnings for € 128.4 million versus € 135.7 million, a decline of 5.4%. As a consequence, earnings per share were at € 8.51 compared to € 8.74. The operational tax ratio was calculated at 26.5% versus last year’s 28.5%.

Taking into account the restructuring costs, EBT was at € 63.4 million and net earnings at € 44.0 million in the first half of the year. Earnings per share were at € 2.92 versus € 8.74 last year.

Regional Development

Sales in the EMEA region reached € 288.3 million in the second quarter, a currency-adjusted decrease of 1.4%. Year-to-date, sales were down by 2.3% to € 654.4 million, representing 50.4% of consolidated sales. Gross profit margin was at a strong 53.5% compared to 54.5% last year.

Second quarter sales in the Americas were up 6.9% currency-adjusted, reaching € 168.6 million. First half sales increased 9.2% to € 346.7 million. The region now accounts for 26.7% of consolidated sales. Gross profit margin stood at 47.1% compared to 48.9% last year.

In the US market, sales increased by 4.8% to $ 132.7 million in the second quarter and by 4.1% to $ 271.4 million after six months.

Sales in the Asia/Pacific region decreased in the second quarter by 4.5% currency-adjusted to € 143.4 million and 2.8% after six months reaching € 296.7 million. The total region accounts for 22.9% of sales. Gross profit margin reached 50.5% versus 53.6% last year.

Net Assets and Financial Position

Equity

As of June 30, 2009, total assets climbed by 15.0% to € 2,047.8 million. Due to the higher balance sheet total, the equity ratio stood at 56.6% after 60.7% in the previous year.

Working capital

In reporting terms, inventories grew 3.0% to € 432.1 million. Inventories were down 0.7% on a comparable basis, showing a strong improvement versus end of Q1. Accounts receivables were up 6.2% (3.1% on a comparable basis), reaching € 502.8 million. Working capital totaled € 540.6 million (ex acquisition € 524.9 million) compared to € 552.1 million last year, manifesting a strong improvement in this area from the first quarter.

Capex/Cashflow

For Capex, the company spent € 24.6 million in the first half versus € 50.6 million last year. Due to the reduced capital expenditure as well as a solid improvement in working capital, PUMA’s free cashflow reached € 45.1 million compared to an outflow of € 23.6 million in last year’s comparison, representing a strong improvement over last year.

An outflow of € 61.0 million (last year: € 19.7 million) is related to acquisition cost. Taking the acquisition cost into account, the free cashflow was € -15.8 million compared to € -43.3 million last year.

Cash position

Total cash end of June stood at € 302.7 versus € 288.2 million last year. Bank debts were down from € 65.6 million to € 44.8 million. As a result, the net cash position increased from € 222.6 million to € 257.9 million year over year, underlying PUMA’s strong focus on efficient cash management.

Outlook 2009 – Market environment remains challenging

A solid first half performance and a pro-active restructuring and reengineering program, which has achieved improvements in operating expenses, working capital and free cashflow, have enabled PUMA to protect its industry leading key-financial parameters. Further improvements should be realized over the next 18 months as the program continues to yield additional efficiencies and cost savings. However, we remain highly cautious and anticipate a continued challenging and volatile retail industry due to the decline of private consumption as a result of the weakness in the global economy, which may negatively impact sales in second half.

The 121-page document covers the reporting period 2007/2008 and has exclusively been published online for environmental reasons. It details PUMA’s progress to enhance working and social standards in its supply chain, build capacity at its suppliers’ factories, broaden its range of sustainable products and reduce the company’s environmental footprint through the PUMAVision category puma.safe. It furthermore outlines PUMA’s activities in supporting artists and creative organizations through the category puma.creative and its initiatives to support global peace through puma.peace.

Download the full report here.

“Our 2007/2008 PUMAVision Sustainability Report is a testament to the fact that we at PUMA do not simply talk about sustainable development, we take action,” said Jochen Zeitz, Chairman and CEO of PUMA. “We are proud of our successes over the years and of our commitment to sustainability and the highest ethical standards, but realize that when it comes to corporate responsibility, there is and will always be room for improvement. Now, more than ever, we are deepening our commitments and dedicating ourselves to a strategy that sees the ‘whole’ as a sum of its parts—our PUMAVision. As we work towards a safer, more peaceful, and more creative world, we will continue to expand our outreach as corporate global citizens beyond the boundaries of business, not only for the benefit of our stakeholders, but for all.”

Highlights of the visually appealing document include:

• A portrait of the concept PUMAVision
• A transparent description of PUMA’s response to the challenges it faces in its supply chain operations, capacity building projects and brand collaboration initiatives
• The expansion of PUMA’s range of sustainable products through Fair Trade footballs and apparel from “Cotton Made in Africa”
• A detailed account of PUMA’s numerous initiatives to protect the environment, including the progress on reaching targets of a 25% reduction of energy and water consumption as well as waste creation for offices by 2010 and decreasing its carbon footprint
• An outline of PUMA’s worldwide activities in cooperation with the charity organization “Peace One Day” to raise awareness for global peace
• An account of its sponsorship of the art exhibition 30 Americans to support the work of 31 African-American artists
• A recap of PUMA’ numerous projects on the African continent

The report has been certified by TÜV Rheinland, which “is confident that PUMA AG operates a meaningful and adequate system to collect, measure, control and steer their sustainability activities and that the PUMA 2007/2008 Sustainability Report presents information and facts that give a realistic impression on the sustainability performance of the company.”

The Global Reporting Initiative has reconfirmed an A+ rating for the document.

PUMA’s endeavours to enhance its social and environmental standards are ongoing. The Sportlifestyle company endorses the campaign “Seal the Deal!” led by the United Nations. This campaign aims at strengthening political will and public support for reaching a comprehensive global climate agreement at the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, in December 2009 to help prevent global warming and further climate change. As a participant in the Carbon Disclosure Project, PUMA is actively working on reducing its direct and indirect climate gas emissions.

PUMA is committed to working in ways that contribute to the world by supporting creativity, sustainability and peace, and by staying true to the values of being Fair, Honest, Positive and Creative in decisions made and actions taken. The foundation for our activities is PUMAVision—a concept that guides our work with its three core programs, puma.creative, puma.safe and puma.peace.

Highlights Third Quarter:

• Consolidated sales at € 673 million, a decline of 5.5% versus last year’s third quarter
• Gross profit margin at 51.9%, up from 50% in the second quarter
• Total operating expenses 2.5% below last year’s level as a result of ongoing cost savings program
• Operating result at € 98 million, reflecting a decrease of 21.6% in the quarter
• EPS at € 4.50 after € 5.81 last year
• Continued strong reduction in inventories and improvement in net cash position

Highlights First Nine Months:

• Global brand sales above € 2 billion
• Consolidated sales slightly up in Euro terms and 2% down currency-adjusted
• Gross profit margin remains above 51%
• Operating result before special items at € 275 million
• EPS before restructuring at € 13.01 after € 14.55 last year

Outlook 2009:

• The ongoing reengineering and restructuring program is expected to continue until the end of 2009
• The strong emphasis on improving working capital and focus on cash generating activities seen in the first three quarters will continue as planned

Jochen Zeitz, CEO: “The business environment has continued to be as challenging as we had expected, which resulted in a decrease in sales and profits. Despite this most difficult market, we generated a profit in all three quarters so far and we expect to be profitable in Q4 again. We hope to see first signs of an improving business environment in the run up to the Football World Cup in South Africa, where PUMA through its strong ties with African Football has a home field advantage.”

Sales and Earnings Development

Global Brand Sales

PUMA’s brand sales in the third quarter, which include consolidated and license sales, decreased by 7.6% in Euro terms, or by 8.3% currency-adjusted, to € 719.6 million.

After nine months, global brand sales declined currency-neutral 4.8%. In Euro terms, sales decreased by 2.6% to € 2,093.8 million. On a currency-neutral basis, Footwear sales were down by 5.3% to € 1,113.7 million and Apparel sales by 6.2% to € 719.1 million. Accessories sales increased by 1.3% to € 260.9 million.

Consolidated Sales

Consolidated sales in the third quarter decreased by 6.3% currency-neutral or by 5.5% in Euro terms to € 673.4 million. On a currency-neutral basis, Footwear sales were down by 13.0% at € 358.7 million, and Apparel sales decreased by 5.2% to € 238.1 million. Due to first time consolidations, Accessories sales improved significantly by 38.5% to € 76.6 million.

After the first nine months, consolidated sales were down by 2.0% on a currency-neutral basis but increased by 0.4% in Euro terms to € 1,971.1 million. Sales in EMEA and Asia/Pacific were below last year’s level. Sales in the Americas region, however, increased despite the challenging market environment. Footwear sales were down by 5.6% currency-neutral at € 1,085.8 million. Apparel sales decreased by 6.3% to € 664.3 million on high comparables last year after the Football Euro 2008 generated strong replica sales. Accessories sales increased significantly by 45.3% to € 221.0 million.

Gross Profit Margin

In the third quarter, the gross profit margin decreased from 53.6% last year to 51.9%. This decline mainly derives from further inventory reduction programs and changes in the product and regional mix, as well as higher raw material costs. After the first nine months, PUMA achieved a gross profit margin of 51.4% versus 53.2% last year. Footwear reported 50.2% compared to 53.1%, Apparel 52.2% versus 53.3% and Accessories increased to 54.8% from 53.3% last year.

Operating Expenses

Operating expenses decreased by 2.5% to € 256.9 million in the third quarter. During the first nine months, operating expenses remained at last year’s level of € 753.1 million, representing a cost ratio of 38.2% versus last year’s 38.3%.

Marketing/Retail expenses decreased by 4.7% to € 374.9 million mainly as a result of last year’s higher spending level in relation to the Olympic Games and Football Euro Cup. The cost ratio declined from 20.0% to 19.0% of sales. Other selling expenses increased by 10.4% to € 240.3 million, or from 11.1% to 12.2% of sales. Product development and design increased from 13.6% to € 43.4 million, or as a percentage of sales from 1.9% to 2.2%. Other general and administration expenses were down by 7.2% at € 94.6 million, representing 4.8% of sales versus 5.2% last year. Depreciation increased by 10.4% to € 44.7 million due to full year effects from last year’s retail expansion.

Operating Result before Special Items

Amid lower sales combined with the softened margin in the quarter, the operating result came in at € 98.0 million in the quarter versus € 125.0 million last year. As a percentage of sales, it fell to 14.5% from 17.5% last year.

After nine months, the operating result was down by 12.2% at € 275.1 million from € 313.2 million, while the operating margin was still double-digit with 14.0% versus 16.0% last year.

Special Items – Reengineering and Restructuring Program

The reengineering and restructuring program, which resulted in a one-time charge of € 110 million in the first quarter, will continue as planned and should be largely finalized by the end of 2009. The program will provide for a more efficient, leaner and faster business platform to adjust to the current market conditions.

Considering the restructuring charge, EBIT for the first nine months totaled € 165.1 million compared to € 313.2 million last year.

Financial Result

Due to lower interest rates and the accumulation of interest on purchase price liabilities from acquisitions, the financial result in the third quarter was at € -1.9 million versus € -0.5 million in last year’s quarter. After nine months the financial result stood at € -5.6 million compared to a slightly positive € 0.5 million last year.

Earnings

The company’s pre-tax profit (EBT) was € 96.0 million in the third quarter versus € 124.5 million last year. Net earnings totaled € 67.9 million versus € 89.0 million, a decline of 23.6%. This translated into earnings per share of € 4.50 compared to € 5.81.

Before restructuring costs, EBT came in at € 269.4 million versus € 313.7 million for the first nine months and net earnings totaled € 196.3 million versus € 224.7 million, representing a decline of 12.6%. Earnings per share were at € 13.01 compared to € 14.55. The operational tax ratio was calculated at 27.9% versus last year’s 28.7%.

Taking the restructuring costs into account, EBT was € 159.4 million and net earnings were € 112.0 million with earnings per share at € 7.42 versus € 14.55 last year, a decline of 49.0%.

Regional Development

In the EMEA region, third quarter sales decreased by 3.1% currency-neutral and totaled € 366.4 million in the third quarter. While the sales performance in Western Europe was impacted by promotional sales due to the current market situation, the EEMEA region managed to stay on prior year level. After nine months, sales were down by 2.6% to € 1,020.8 million, representing 51.8% of consolidated sales. Gross profit margin was at 53.2% compared to 55.2% last year.

Sales in the Americas were down by 11.2% currency-adjusted at € 165.4 million in the third quarter. After nine months, however, sales rose by 1.6% to € 512.1 million. The region now accounts for 26.0% of consolidated sales. Gross profit margin was at 47.9% compared to 48.9% last year.

In the US market, sales decreased by 11.3% to $ 129.5 million in the third quarter and by 1.4% to $ 400.9 million after nine months. For the Latin American region this quarter was characterized by the convergence of increased import restrictions and other conditions which had negative impacts on sales performance.

In the Asia/Pacific region, sales fell by 8.3% in the third quarter currency-neutral, but increased in Euro terms by 1.2% to € 141.6 million. After nine months, sales were down by 4.7% currency-neutral but increased by 8.5% in Euro terms to € 438.2 million, representing 22.2% of consolidated sales. Gross profit margin reached 51.1% versus 53.1% last year.

Net Assets and Financial Position

Equity

As of September 30, 2009, total assets were up by 7.9% to € 2,057.5 million. Based on the higher balance sheet total, the equity ratio stood at 59.1% after 62.3% in the previous year.

Working Capital

PUMA adhered to its plan to significantly reduce inventory, which improved by 17.5% to € 356.4 million. Accounts receivable were slightly below last year’s level at € 530.7 million. Working capital improved to € 523.3 million (ex acquisition € 507.6 million) from € 599.6 million last year – showing again a significant enhancement compared to previous quarters and thus underpinning our strong focus on managing working capital.

Capex/Cashflow

In the first nine months, the company invested € 40.8 million versus € 79.1 million last year. The reduction in capital expenditure together with a solid improvement in working capital led to a strong increase in PUMA’s free cashflow of € 145.1 million from € 17.2 million, showing a strong enhancement compared to last year. An outflow of € 75.8 million versus € 24.9 million last year is related to acquisitions. Taking these acquisitions into account, the free cashflow amounted to € 69.4 million versus an outflow of € 7.7 million last year.

Cash Position

Given the strong focus on cash management, total cash at the end of September rose from € 297.3 million to € 376.9 million and bank debts declined from € 61.1 million to € 37.4 million this year. As a result, net cash was up from € 236.2 million to € 339.5 million this year, a respectable increase of 43.7%.

Outlook 2009 – Market environment remains challenging in Q4

The market and consumer environment is expected to remain challenging. The reengineering and restructuring program is planned to be finalized by the end of the year and will generate improvements in efficiency and cost savings in the future.

Highlights Fourth Quarter:

• Consolidated sales down 10.1% currency-adjusted
• Gross profit margin at 51.0%, up 430 basis points versus last year
• Operating result up 21.3% to € 45 million
• Special items of € 18 million impact net earnings
• EPS up 80% at € 1.08 after € 0.60 last year

Highlights January – December:

• Consolidated sales decreased 3.7% currency-adjusted
• Gross profit margin at 51.3% versus 51.8% last year
• Operating result at € 320 million or 13.0% of sales
• EBIT including special items at € 192 million
• EPS at € 8.50 versus € 15.15 last year
• Free cashflow before acquisitions at €256 million up 130% and 2nd best result in history

Outlook 2010:

• Despite a continuously tense global economy the currency-adjusted sales volume in 2010 is expected to at least reach last year’s level.
• A comparable gross profit margin will be targeted in spite of a lower currency hedging position and higher proportion of team sport product sales.

Increased marketing expenses are to be expected during the World Cup year, whereas the 2009 cost reduction program should provide for cost savings and increases in efficiency, which should at least compensate the one-off expenses.

Jochen Zeitz, CEO: “Despite the global financial crisis and only a few major sports events, PUMA remained firm in a difficult market environment, posting an only moderate decline in annual sales along with the second best cashflow development in the history of the company. The comprehensive restructuring and reengineering program that we implemented during the year enabled us to become an even more efficient and focused company that is aligned to today’s economic realities. PUMA had an excellent and successful start into the football year by winning the African Cup of Nations with Egypt. We will turn the Football World Cup in South Africa into a home game and are determined to make use of and invest in all opportunities that offer further growth to strengthen the brand’s and company’s desirability in the long run.”

The Year 2009

As a result of the financial crisis and its impact on the global economy, 2009 proved to be very challenging for all market participants. Despite the global recession and only a few major sporting events, PUMA succeeded in standing its ground in the difficult market environment. The performance of Usain Bolt at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin, where he broke the 100m and 200m world records, was, among others, a particular highlight for the PUMA brand.

As early signs of the economic deceleration appeared, PUMA pro-actively implemented measures starting in Q4 of 2008. During 2009, management continued to install a comprehensive restructuring and re-engineering program to optimize the retail portfolio, the global organizational structure and operational processes. This resulted in one-off expenses in the amount of € 127.8 million

Currency-adjusted, global brand sales decreased by 6.4% to remain above € 2.6 billion. Currency-adjusted consolidated sales declined by only 3.7% to approximately € 2.5 billion. Despite the difficult market environment, the gross profit margin stood at a robust 51.3%, which means that PUMA continues to maintain its position at the upper echelon of the sporting goods industry. The operating profit before special items totaled € 320.2 million or 13.0% of sales, compared to 13.9% in the previous year. Including special items, earnings per share amounted to € 8.50 compared to € 15.15 in the previous year. Working capital decreased by 9.9% to € 397.8 million. This strongly supported the free cashflow before acquisitions, which more than doubled from € 110.7 million to € 255.8 million, yielding the second best result in the company’s history.

The price of the PUMA share stood at € 231.84 at the end of the year and increased by 65.2% year-on-year, which resulted in a market capitalization of approximately € 3.5 billion.

Sales and Earnings Development 4th Quarter 2009

Consolidated sales decreased currency-adjusted as expected by 10.1% in the fourth quarter 2009 and totaled € 489.5 million. In the fourth quarter which traditionally is the weakest, sales were effected by the significantly reduced inventory leading to less close out sales.

Currency adjusted sales in EMEA were down 10.9%, Americas sales decreased 2.6% and Asia/Pacific 16.2%. Footwear sales decreased 16.8% and Apparel 10.9%. Sales in Accessories increased 39.4%, mainly from first time consolidation effects.

The gross profit margin increased to 51%, up 430 basis points from last year. All regions and product segments contributed positively.

While operating expenses decreased by 9.2% to € 209.7 million, the cost ratio increased to 42.8% versus 41.1% last year due to the lower sales basis in Q4 2009. Operating profit (before special items) improved by 21.3% from € 37.2 million to € 45.1 million or from 6.6% to 9.2% as a percentage of sales. Including special items, earnings per share were at € 1.08 compared to € 0.60 in the previous year.

Further cost saving potential has been identified, leading to additional € 17.8 million one-off expenses.

Sales and Earnings Development January-December 2009

Global Brand Sales

Worldwide PUMA brand sales, comprised of licensed and consolidated sales, dropped by 6.4% currency-adjusted to just above € 2.6 billion. In Euro terms, this corresponds to a 5.3% decrease.

Consolidated Sales

Currency-adjusted sales decreased by 3.7% to € 2,460.7 million in 2009 which corresponds to a 2.5% decrease in Euros.

The Footwear segment posted a decrease in currency-adjusted sales by 7.8% to € 1,327.8 million. The share in consolidated sales stood at 54.0%, compared to 56.8% in the previous year.

Currency-adjusted sales in the Apparel segment dropped by 7.4% to € 852.9 million, representing a 34.7% share in consolidated sales, compared to 35.6% in the previous year.

Currency-adjusted sales in the Accessories segment increased by 44.0% to € 280.1 million, which is primarily due to first time consolidation effects. The share in consolidated sales increased to 11.4%, compared to 7.6% in the previous year.

Gross Profit Margin

As a result of the promotional environment and a change in the regional mix, the gross profit margin decreased by 50 basis points to 51.3%, which is still in the upper echelon of the sporting goods industry. In absolute figures, the gross profit margin decreased by 3.4% from € 1,306.6 million to € 1,262.4 million

The gross profit margin for Footwear was 50.2%, compared to 51.7% in the previous year. The gross profit margin for Apparel increased from 51.9% to 52.1% while Accessories recorded a significant increase in the gross profit margin, rising from 51.7% to 54.3%.

Operating Expenses/Result

As a result of the cost reduction measures, operating expenses before special items decreased from € 982.0 million to € 962.8 million, or by 2.0%. As a percentage of sales, the cost ratio stood at 39.1%, compared to 38.9% in the previous year.

Within selling expenses, expenses relating to marketing/retail declined from € 528.6 million to € 494.1 million, corresponding to a cost ratio decrease from 20.9% to 20.1% of sales. However, previous year’s expenses include costs related to the Olympic Games and the 2008 European Football Championship.

Other selling expenses increased by 4.7% to € 309.8 million, or from 11.7% to 12.6% of sales. Expenses for product development and design increased from € 55.1 million to € 58.1 million, or from 2.2% to 2.4% of sales. Administration and general expenses decreased from € 102.4 million to € 100.9 million, with the cost ratio remaining unchanged at 4.1% of sales.

The total depreciation amounted to € 60.2 million, which reflects an increase of 7.7% compared to the previous year, mainly attributable to first time consolidation and full year effects of last year’s expansion of the company’s own retail operations.

Operating profit before special items was € 320.2 million, compared to € 350.4 million in the previous year. As a percentage of sales, this corresponds to an operating margin of 13.0%, compared to 13.9% last year.

Special Items – Reengineering and Restructuring Program

In light of the difficult market environment, PUMA implemented further measures in the first quarter of 2009 to ensure long-term and profitable growth. The management installed a rigorous reengineering and cost reduction program that will reduce the initially planned costs on an annual basis. The originally required one-off expenses of € 110 Mio have increased to € 127.8 million. The one-off expenses relate to the optimization of the retail store portfolio, the global organizational structure and the re-engineering of some key operational processes. Considering non-cash impacting depreciation, € 84.5 million of the one-off expenses will become cash relevant. The cost reduction program will help to further reduce the planned costs and provide for cost savings beyond our original target of up to € 150 million.

Including the special items, the operating profit (EBIT) amounted to € 192.4 million, or 7.8% of sales.

Financial Result

The financial result was € -8.3 million, compared to € 1.1 million in the previous year. Significantly lower interest rates and the higher interest portion relating to purchase price liabilities have had a negative impact on the financial result.

The financial result includes interest income in the amount of € 3.8 million (vs. € 11.9 million in the previous year), as well as interest expenses in the amount of € 6.6 million (previous year: € 6.7 million). The financial result also includes expenses relating to accumulated, long-term purchase price liabilities from corporate acquisitions in the amount of € 4.4 million (previous year: € 3.1 million), as well as expenses in the amount of € 1.1 million (previous year: € 1.0 million) stemming from the valuation of pension plans.

Earnings before Taxes

Earnings before taxes (EBT) decreased from € 326.4 million to € 184.1 million, or from 12.9% to 7.5% as a percentage of sales. This reduction is primarily due to the special items. Tax expenses decreased from € 94.8 million to € 58.2 million. The tax rate stood at 31.6%, up from 29.0% in the previous year. This was mainly attributable to the recognition of one-off expenses for tax purposes in the respective countries.

Net Earnings

Net earnings in the 2009 financial year amounted to € 128.2 million, compared to € 232.8 million last year. The net rate of return was 5.2%, compared to 9.2% in the previous year. Earnings per share and diluted earnings per share amounted to € 8.50, compared to € 15.15 in the previous year.

Regional Development

Currency-adjusted sales in the EMEA region declined by 4.0% to € 1,217.6 million. The share of the EMEA region in consolidated sales amounted to 49.5%, compared to 51.5% in the previous year.

By product segments, currency-adjusted Footwear sales decreased by 13.1%, and Apparel sales declined by 9.5%. As a result of the acquisition of a former licensee, Accessories sales nearly doubled with an increase of 98.7%.

The gross profit margin stood at 53.3%, compared to 53.5% in the previous year.

The Americas region posted an increase in currency-adjusted sales of 0.6% to € 665.2 million. The share in consolidated sales stood at 27.0%, compared to 25.8% in the previous year.

Currency-adjusted Footwear sales were up by 1.2%, and Apparel sales recorded a 0.1% increase. Accessories sales decreased by 4.3%.

The gross profit margin stood at 48.2%, compared to 49.2% in the previous year.

Currency-adjusted sales in the US market, which is the region’s largest market, decreased by 0.9% to
USD 533.5 million.

Currency-adjusted sales in the Asia/Pacific region decreased by 7.7% to € 578.0 million. The share in consolidated sales increased to 23.5%, compared to 22.7% in the previous year.

Currency-adjusted Footwear sales decreased by 10.4%, Apparel sales by 7.4% and Accessories sales remained unchanged at the previous year’s level.

The gross profit margin remained unchanged at the previous year’s level of 50.8%.

Net Assets and Financial Position

Equity

Total assets as of December 31, 2009 increased by 6.1%, rising from € 1,898.7 million to € 2,014.1 million, particularly due to the strong increase in cash and cash equivalents. The equity ratio stood at 61.6%, compared to 62.0% in the previous year. In absolute terms, shareholders’ equity increased by 5.3% to € 1,239.8 million, compared to € 1,177.2 million in the previous year. Despite the global economic conditions, PUMA continues to have extremely solid capital resources.

Working Capital

Due to a strong working capital management, the company succeeded in reducing working capital by 9.9%, or from € 436.4 million to € 393.1 million. As a percentage of sales, this corresponds to an improvement from 17.3% to 16.0%. The working capital improvement was mainly attributable to a significant 19.1% reduction in inventories to € 348.5 million. Trade receivables were up slightly by 0.3% to € 397.8 million, while trade payables decreased by 2.6% to € 262.1 million.

Cashflow

The strong working capital management enabled the Company to achieve its second best free cashflow (before acquisitions) in its history, nearly matching 2004’s record result.

Net cash used for investing activities increased from € 133.3 million to € 139.2 million. Other investing activities include the purchase of fixed assets in the amount of € 54.5 million, compared to € 119.2 million in the previous year, as well as € 84.4 million for purchase price liabilities in connection with corporate acquisitions, compared to € 24.9 million in the previous year.

As a result, the free cashflow improved significantly from € 85.8 million to € 171.4 million. Excluding payments for acquisitions, the free cashflow more than doubled from € 110.7 million to € 255.8 million. As a percentage of sales, free cashflow (before acquisitions) stood at 10.4%, compared to 4.4% in the previous year.

Cash and cash equivalents reported as of December 31, 2009 increased from € 375.0 million to € 485.6 million.

Dividend

The Board of Management and the Supervisory Board will propose a dividend in the amount of € 1.80 per share (previous year: € 2.75) be paid out for the financial year 2009 from the retained earnings of PUMA AG. As a percentage of consolidated net earnings, the dividend pay-out rate increased from 17.8% to 21.2%. The dividend is to be paid out on the day following the Annual General Meeting, where the profit distribution is authorized.

Outlook 2010

In light of the ongoing restrictive consumer environment and the overall global economic volatility, continued restrained consumer behavior is to be expected. A quantitative estimate for 2010 is therefore difficult to make, despite the current positive impetus from the Football World Cup. However, we expect that currency-adjusted sales in 2010 will at least reach last year’s level. PUMA will strive for a gross profit margin comparable to the previous year, despite the present currency hedging position and a higher proportion of team sport products with lower contribution margin.

Increased marketing expenses are to be expected during the World Cup year, whereas the cost reduction program should provide for efficiency increases and cost savings to ensure the company’s sustained earnings power.

A clear improvement in net earnings will be achieved, as no special items are expected for 2010. Under consideration of these planning parameters and omitting the special items, we strive to achieve an improvement of our net results.

This document contains forward-looking information about the Company’s financial status and strategic initiatives. Such information is subject to a certain level of risk and uncertainty that could cause the Company’s actual results to differ significantly from the information discussed in this document. The forward-looking information is based on the current expectations and prognosis of the management team. Therefore, this document is further subject to the risk that such expectations or prognosis, or the premise of such underlying expectations or prognosis, become erroneous. Circumstances that could alter the Company’s actual results and procure such results to differ significantly from those contained in forward-looking statements made by or on behalf of the Company include, but are not limited to those discussed be above.

Highlights January-March:

• Consolidated sales down by 2.1%
• Gross profit margin at a strong, sector-leading 52.2%, slightly above last year’s level
• Strong improvements in cost structure as a result of the cost reduction program
• Operating result jumps € 115 million versus last year
• EPS increase to € 5.51 after € 0.37
• Further improvement in equity ratio to 64%

Outlook 2010:

• Management expects sales growth in the low to mid single-digits
• Cost reduction program shall provide cost savings as planned
• Pre-tax profit is expected to improve by at least 70%

Jochen Zeitz, CEO: “We had a good start into the new year from a bottom line perspective which highlights the effectiveness of our comprehensive restructuring and reengineering efforts. Assuming a continuous improvement of the economic outlook and a planned increase of supplier orders, we anticipate low to mid single digit growth for the full year, while net earnings should jump significantly to complete the expected earnings rebound. We are now looking forward to the upcoming World Cup and to a successful integration of our newly acquired Cobra Golf business.”

Sales and Earnings Development January-March 2010

Global Brand Sales

Worldwide PUMA brand sales, which include consolidated and license sales, decreased by 2.3% to € 720.6 million.
Footwear sales were down by 6.0% to € 382.8 million and Accessories by 3.1% to € 90.3 million. Apparel sales increased by 4.3% to € 247.5 million.

Consolidated Sales

PUMA’s consolidated sales in the first quarter were down by 2.7% currency-neutral and 2.1% in Euro terms to € 683.1 million. This development should be seen in the context of last year’s sales increase of 3.6%, which was mainly driven by closeout sales in order to reduce inventories. In addition, supplier orders for the first half of 2010 were placed with caution. Excluding the previous year’s inventory clearance, sales were slightly above last year. Sales in Footwear declined currency-neutral by 5.1% to € 378.8 million and Accessories decreased by 1.6% to € 77.5 million. Apparel sales rose by 1.2% to € 226.8 million due to a positive development in PUMA’s teamsport business. In regional terms, sales in EMEA were down currency-neutral by 6.2% to € 351.8 million (share: 51.5%) and Asia/Pacific declined by 8.4% to € 141.0 million (share: 20.6%). Sales in the Americas region significantly improved by 9.8% to € 190.4 million (share: 27.9%) with both regions – North America and Latin America – positively contributing to this strong performance.

Gross Profit Margin

In the first quarter, PUMA’s gross profit margin reached a strong, sector-leading 52.2% compared to 52.1% last year. The Footwear segment reported 50.7% versus 50.4%, Apparel was at 53.5% compared to 53.7% and Accessories remained unchanged to last year at 55.6%. In terms of region, the gross profit margin in EMEA softened to 54.3% after 55.1%, Americas rose to 47.4% from 46.7% – driven by Latin America – and Asia/Pacific improved to 53.4% from 51.0% last year.

Operating Expenses

Operating expenses decreased by 4.6% from € 254.1 million to € 242.3 million. As a percentage of sales, the cost ratio improved from 36.4% last year to 35.5% because of the cost reduction program introduced last year. Expenses in marketing/retail and depreciation decreased due to the improvement to the overall retail store portfolio.

EBIT

PUMA’s EBIT before special items increased by 4.4% to € 119.0 million versus € 114.0 million last year. As a percentage of sales the EBIT margin improved from 16.3% last year to an excellent 17.4%. Taking last year’s special items into account, EBIT increased from € 4.0 million to € 119.0 million.

Financial Result

The financial result was at € -1.2 million after € -1.6 million last year, as the net cash position improved significantly and led to lower interest expenses due to reduced bank debts.

Net Earnings 

The pre-tax profit (EBT) jumped from € 2.4 million to € 117.8 million. Net earnings increased to € 83.1 million from € 5.6 million based on a tax rate of 29.5% versus an operational tax rate of 28.5% last year.
Earnings per share rose to € 5.51 from € 0.37 and diluted earnings per share were at € 5.50 compared to
€ 0.37 last year.

Net Assets and Financial Position

Equity

As of March 31, 2010, total assets increased by 2.4% to € 2,159.3 million while PUMA’s equity ratio improved significantly from 56.6% to 64.0% this year.

Working Capital

Inventories declined by 15.9% to € 375.7 million and accounts receivable went up by 6.7% to € 568.6 million. Accounts payables increased by 7.2% to € 265.5 million. Working capital remained stable at € 595.6 million compared to € 596.9 million last year.

Capex/Cashflow

Capital investment amounted to € 7.7 million in the first quarter after € 11.6 million in the previous year.
The free cashflow came in at € -73.4 million compared to € -118.0 million last year.

Cash Position

Total cash by the end of March jumped 59.5% to € 426.8 million after € 267.6 million last year. Bank debts were reduced by 41.8% from € 63.2 million to € 36.8 million. As a result, the net cash position improved significantly by 90.7% from € 204.5 million to € 390.0 million.

Outlook 2010

Assuming a further improvement in the overall economic outlook, sales for the full year 2010 should strengthen accordingly throughout the year. The company’s pre-tax profit is expected to improve by at least 70% in 2010 while sales should post an increase in the low to mid single digits.

This document contains forward-looking information about the Company’s financial status and strategic initiatives. Such information is subject to a certain level of risk and uncertainty that could cause the Company’s actual results to differ significantly from the information discussed in this document. The forward-looking information is based on the current expectations and prognosis of the management team. Therefore, this document is further subject to the risk that such expectations or prognosis, or the premise of such underlying expectations or prognosis, become erroneous. Circumstances that could alter the Company’s actual results and procure such results to differ significantly from those contained in forward-looking statements made by or on behalf of the Company include, but are not limited to those discussed be above.

Twenty strategic PUMA suppliers based in China, Vietnam, Cambodia and other countries – which produce together more than two thirds of all PUMA products consumed – will receive GRI certified training on transparent measurement and reporting on their sustainability performance using the GRI G3 Guidelines – the world’s most widely-used framework for sustainability reporting. The training within the Global Action Network for Transparency in the Supply Chain program (GANTSCh) will be conducted by GRI Certified Training Partners. During the reporting process, scheduled to start in 2010, the suppliers will be supported by regional sustainability consultants and the first sustainability reports are expected to be released in 2011/2012.

“Supply chain sustainability reporting is a key part of PUMA’s overall sustainability strategy,” said Dr. Reiner Hengstmann, Global Director of puma.safe supply chain. “Without sustainable suppliers, we will not be able to produce sustainable products or credibly report about PUMA’s own sustainability initiatives. The GANTSCh project helps to ensure that our suppliers fully embrace the concept of sustainability and introduce respective programs in their companies.”

PUMA originally joined the GRI-GTZ pilot project “Transparency in the Supply Chain” which was launched in 2006 in which three PUMA suppliers in South Africa were trained and consulted on issuing sustainability reports. According to the participants, the project helped them to understand sustainability concepts through direct training from experts in the field, to learn how to measure sustainability performance by using key performance indicators, to become more transparent and learn how to report on energy consumption, waste production, work accidents and many other issues. They expanded their understanding of customers’ needs regarding sustainability issues and improved their competitive advantage and reputation.

“Some companies show consequent commitment in building a sustainable future. Puma is one of these companies,“ said Dr. Nelmara Arbex, Learning Services Director, GRI. “PUMA is not only committed to measure and manage their own impacts but they also understand that these practices have to be implemented around its business. GRI is very pleased that PUMA, which has participated in the GRI/GTZ project from the beginning, has decided to extend the GRI reporting practice to all its strategic suppliers.“ One of the participants in the pilot project, Impahla Clothing, a PUMA apparel manufacturer in Cape Town, received the ACCA Award (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) for its maiden sustainability reports. Impahla also became the first carbon neutral garment supplier on the African continent in 2009, after the factory management was introduced to the benefits of sustainability through the project. Only recently, Impahla issued its third sustainability report. https://safe.puma.com/us/en/

The second phase of the project is currently in progress under the GANTSCh program with ten suppliers in six countries (Bangladesh, China, India, Pakistan, Portugal and Turkey) participating. Including Impahla, three suppliers already released their new sustainability reports while the remaining factories will publish their reports later in the Football World Cup year 2010.

PUMA’s mission is to become the most desirable and sustainable sportlifestyle company and it has implemented a long-term sustainability program throughout all its operations. Increasing sustainability in its supply chain through sustainability reporting is therefore an important element in PUMA’s overall sustainability strategy.

Proactively responding to accusations of low labour standards in its supplier factories by non-governmental organizations in the past, PUMA endeavours to increase transparency in its supply chain. Especially in countries such as China, India or Bangladesh, where working and living conditions differ from standards in developed countries, transparent social and working conditions play an important role in PUMA’s sustainability approach. PUMA continues to improve working and social standards through factory audits and capacity building projects over time and PUMA aims to work with the best suppliers in these countries. Sustainability reporting of the suppliers provides the opportunity to reveal what has already been achieved and where more work is necessary.

GRI’s engagement with PUMA commenced in 2006 with the generous support of the Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) in the joint GRI-GTZ Transparency in the Supply Chain Pilot Project. GTZ is a federally owned, international cooperation enterprise for sustainable development with worldwide operations which supports the German Government in achieving its development policy objectives.

“Sound reporting is an important catalyst for change towards more sustainable business practices.” said Jörg Hartmann, Executive Director, Centre for Co-operation with the Private Sector/ PPP, GTZ. “I am very pleased that the pioneering „Transparency in the Supply Chain“ project set up by the GRI and the German Government four years ago is now established as a Global Action Network. I am convinced that many SMEs in emerging markets can benefit from the GANTSCh program“.

For further information on PUMA’s sustainability program, please refer to the latest PUMAVision Sustainability Report 2007/ 2008: https://ir2.flife.de/data/puma_csr/igb_html/index.php?bericht_id=1000001

For further information on GRI’s GANTSCh program, please refer to: www.globalreporting.org/CurrentPriorities/SupplyChain/GlobalActionNetwork/GAN.htm