This conference call transcript was computer generated and almost certianly contains errors. This transcript is provided for information purposes only.EarningsCall, LLC makes no representation about the accuracy of the aforementioned transcript, and you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on the information provided by the transcript.

MillerKnoll, Inc.
9/22/2026
Good morning and welcome to Miller Knoll's quarterly earnings conference call. As a reminder, this call is being recorded. I would now like to introduce your host for today's conference, Wendy Watson, Vice President of Investor Relations.
Good morning and welcome to our first quarter fiscal 2027 conference call. On with me are Jeff Stutz, Miller Knoll's Interim Chief Executive Officer, and Kevin Veltman, Chief Financial Officer. Joining them for the Q&A session are John Michael, President of North America Contract, and Debbie Propst, President of Global Retail. We issued our earnings press release for the quarter ended August 29, 2026, before market opened today, and it is available on our investor relations website at millernull.com. A replay of this call will be available on our website within 24 hours. Before I turn the call over to Jeff, Please remember our safe harbor disclosure regarding forward-looking information. During the call, management may discuss information that is forward-looking and involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results to be different than those expressed or implied. Please evaluate the forward-looking information in the context of these factors, which are detailed in today's press release. The forward-looking statements are made as of today's date and except as may be required by law, we assume no obligation to update or supplement these statements. We also refer to certain non-GAAP financial metrics and our press release includes the relevant non-GAAP reconciliations. With that, I'll turn it over to Jeff.
Thanks, Wendy. Good morning and welcome, everyone. Before Kepner reviews our financial results and outlook, I'd like to update you on the priorities we outlined last quarter and our commitment to driving improved performance and disciplined execution across the organization. Overall, we delivered solid margin performance, earnings and cash generation despite revenue headwinds. First quarter sales were $923 million, down 3.4% year over year, primarily reflecting softer than anticipated revenue in our North America contract and global retail segments. Adjusted earnings per share were 53 cents, and excluding an 11 cent per share net benefit from IEPA tariff refunds, adjusted earnings per share were 42 cents. Above our guidance range and reflecting disciplined execution and cost management. Demand conditions varied across our business. Orders were particularly strong in international contract and continued to grow in global retail while North America contract orders were softer than we anticipated. At the same time, Several of our internal demand indicators and customer verticals remain quite constructive. We're encouraged by the progress our teams are making against this backdrop and by the actions underway to strengthen MillerKnoll's performance. As I previewed on our last earnings call, we are focused on three key areas. First, we are elevating the level of operational discipline we bring to setting priorities and running the business by concentrating our resources on the initiatives, Thank you for joining us. and leveraging the strength of our brands and our credibility with A&B and commercial real estate specifiers. In international contract, new products are gaining traction in the marketplace. Notably, our recently introduced concert line by Knoll is driving early wins in the private office category, which is an area of our business previously underpenetrated in Europe. We are also targeting efforts aimed at training dealers, and expanding distribution coverage in the Asia Pacific region where we see premium growth opportunities. And in global retail, we're executing our store growth strategy and applying our learnings such as an increased emphasis on our smaller format Herman Miller stores while continuing to optimize our marketing investments to build awareness and customer acquisition. Second, we're maintaining rigorous cost discipline and aligning expenses with revenue levels. In the near term, We're making more deliberate decisions about where we deploy capital and resources while reducing expenses where we can. Our first quarter earnings performance, excluding net tariff refunds, demonstrates early progress toward this goal. Third, we're sharpening our focus on capital allocation, cash flow, and balance sheet strength to support debt reduction during FY27 while preserving our capacity to invest in growth. By bringing greater discipline to capital deployment, we're building upon our business's proven cash generation capabilities. Next, I'll offer some segment highlights for the quarter. In North America contract, first quarter sales declined year over year, due in part to the timing of orders pulled forward late in fiscal 2025 that benefited sales in the first quarter of fiscal 2026. Still, first quarter orders were softer than we expected, with trends varied across sectors, We had continued strength in insurance, financial, and business services. Conversely, order patterns were soft in relation to last year within the healthcare sector and with federal, state, and local government customers. Looking more broadly, we continue to operate in a dynamic environment and are navigating the recent trade developments between the US and Canada. Now, we manufacture in both countries, and our supply chain touches both countries. We're being proactive on both sides of the border, and working closely with suppliers, customers and our own production teams to manage the flow of product and make adjustments where we can. Our full-year outlook includes the most up-to-date assessment of the U.S.-Canada tariff actions, and based on that assessment, we estimate an approximate $0.07 per share impact from costs related to these new tariffs. Given this backdrop, we are managing expenses and production levels carefully while prioritizing investment in our most important growth initiatives. Tariff refunds were also beneficial to help mitigate these pressures to our full-year outlooks, and Kevin will cover those details shortly. Over the last several months, I've spent considerable time with the North America contract team meeting with dealers and customers, and one message has come through very clearly. Strong partnerships are a competitive advantage in this business, and our brands benefit from deeply credible key target markets alongside differentiated product offerings. Our dealers and customers tell us they need two things from us. First, we need to continue to simplify the process of doing business with us. And second, we need to maintain and expand our leadership in product innovation. We're delivering on these needs by improving responsiveness, service levels, and operational execution while also accelerating our new product innovation clock speed. We continue to be optimistic in this business. Despite the demand softness we saw this past quarter, which vary by sector. Our internal forward demand indicators continue to point to healthy conditions across North America. Project funnel and funnel additions were up year over year along with particularly notable growth in awarded contracts. Externally, Class A leasing in the U.S. continues to show strength with the latest four-quarter net absorption in Class A buildings improving to the highest total since mid-2020. All of this suggests The order softness we experienced in the first quarter represents a timing issue rather than a structural slowdown in general business conditions. Turning to international contract, we remain encouraged by the opportunities in this business. Although sales declined year over year, reflecting difficult comparisons in several markets, orders increased across most regions. Activity was particularly strong in Asia, the Middle East, and portions of Europe and Latin America. We saw healthy demand from financial services and private office customers, along with Strength in Healthcare and Technology. We remain focused on expanding and strengthening our international dealer network, increasing engagement and improving alignment as we continue building our international business. During the quarter, our Asia-Pacific team hosted dealers representing more than 20 countries at an event in Jakarta, Indonesia. Key leaders from across Knoll participated, helping us strengthen relationships in the region and position us for further growth. Within the global retail segment, we delivered another quarter of sales and order growth, together with meaningful year-over-year operating margin improvement, even after excluding the net benefit from tariff refunds. While June and July had softer than expected sales and orders, performance strengthened significantly across channels and geographies in the month of August. For the first quarter, North America orders increased 7.5%, and this represents our eighth consecutive quarter of North America retail order growth. A key indicator of our ability to effectively navigate a challenging industry environment while advancing our long-term strategy. During the quarter, we opened a DWR store in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Herman Miller stores in Columbus, Ohio, St. Louis, Missouri, and San Antonio, Texas. Looking ahead, we expect to open five to seven new stores during the second quarter and continue to plan for approximately 14 to 18 new store openings throughout FY27. Beyond expanding our physical footprint, the retail team is developing new ways to engage customers and build awareness of our brands. These initiatives are designed to reach more consumers across our target markets and included a DWR furnished home on Shelter Island, sponsorship of the summer celebration of the iconic Glass House, and increased storytelling on social media with design partners. So with those brief opening comments, I'll now hand the call over to Kevin who will provide additional details on segment financial performance and our outlook for FY27.
You're reading a preview of the MLKN Q1 2027 earnings call.
Free account.