Rusta AB (publ) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript

The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.

Question: Daniel Schmidt - Danske Markets Equities - Analyst : Yes. A couple of questions from me. And you did talk about the currency situation already at the start of this year, this calendar year and your ambitions to compensate for the FX that hasn't been possible, it seems like, given what we've seen in the gross margin for the past couple of quarters. And I'm just wondering, given that you've had good growth and demand seems to be there and 10% in this quarter in local currency, why isn't that possible you think?

Question: Daniel Schmidt - Danske Markets Equities - Analyst : Okay. But -- so what's your reflect -- sorry, go ahead.

Question: Daniel Schmidt - Danske Markets Equities - Analyst : Yes. I think sort of what the market is questioning, I guess, a little bit is also in comparison to one of your competitors that reported yesterday that saw a quite good step-up in the gross margin despite the same exposure that you have. And they did also mention lower sourcing costs underlying lower sourcing. Could you have done better in terms of your purchase power and your bargaining power when it comes to sourcing?

Question: Daniel Schmidt - Danske Markets Equities - Analyst : Yes. That's my sort of on the next question, maybe. How confident are you, given what -- how important price is, of course, that you will be able -- if you haven't been able to fully compensate the headwind, how confident are you that you will be able to benefit from the tailwind that you will get in the US dollar as we go forward? Are you sort of fearing that you are forced to give that all away?

Question: Daniel Schmidt - Danske Markets Equities - Analyst : Okay. Any -- do you dare to give us any guidance? You did say that the gross margin is looking a bit different as we go into Q2, still negatively impacted. But do you dare to give any guidance on this topic when it comes to FX?

Question: Niklas Ekman - - Analyst : Can I follow up a little on that current trading there? When you talk about August and you say that the sales is similar to Q1. I mean, Q1 had a negative phasing or weather effect. And in Q2 now, you also should start to see some positive effects here from the rollout of the new concept. And yet you're talking about a similar trend in August. And realizing we're just talking about one month here, and it's maybe a little bit of a transition month. But is there any weather impact we should be aware of at the start of August or anything else? I guess that's my first question. REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. SEPTEMBER 11, 2025 / 7:00AM, RUSTA.ST - Q1 2026 Rusta AB (publ) Earnings Call

Question: Niklas Ekman - - Analyst : Yes, absolutely. Great. And a second question on Finland. When you look at your store rollout now, you have ramped up significantly in Finland, particularly. I think 14 of your store contracts are in Finland. And this is a market where the profitability is well below the group average, where the poor -- the sales trend in recent quarters has been quite poor. So how confident are you with that expansion? Why are you choosing to ramp up so much in Finland rather than maybe waiting for that market to improve?

Question: Niklas Ekman - - Analyst : Very clear. Can I also ask about the bonded warehouse? You talked about savings of SEK30 million. Are we talking mostly a working capital effect or actually a lower tax? Because it sounded like the main impact here is that you don't pay the tax until when it is shipped to Norway rather than when it arrives in Norrk÷ping. So is it mostly working capital? Or will it actually result in a lower tax for you as well?

Question: Niklas Ekman - - Analyst : Okay. Very clear. So both lower tax and the working capital -- positive working capital effect.