Camping World Q4 Earnings Call Highlights

28 Feb 2026, 03:09 by Tristan Rich · The Markets Daily

Camping World (NYSE:CWH) executives used the company’s fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings call to highlight improved full-year operating performance, while also laying out a 2026 plan centered on faster inventory turns, tighter cost controls, and accelerated growth at Good Sam. Management also discussed near-term disruptions from severe weather and announced a shift in capital allocation that includes pausing the dividend to prioritize balance sheet strength.

Full-year 2025 highlights and Q4 performance

CEO and President Matthew Wagner said the company made “significant progress” in 2025, pointing to full-year adjusted EBITDA growth of more than 35% and same-store unit sales improvement of more than 14%. He also said Good Sam delivered record revenue and that the parts, service and other category saw a “strong improvement in gross margins.”

In the fourth quarter, Wagner said same-store sales volume for new and used vehicles increased 4%, while combined market share “held firm” at 13%.

CFO Tom Kern reported fourth-quarter revenue of $1.2 billion, driven by a 14% increase in used unit volumes, partially offset by a 7% decline in new unit volumes. Kern said new average selling prices improved relative to earlier-year trends and were only down slightly versus the fourth quarter of 2024.

Kern said vehicle gross margins and gross profit per unit were impacted by strategic clearing of aged inventory beginning in December, and he expects that margin pressure to persist in the first half of 2026. The company posted a fourth-quarter adjusted EBITDA loss of $26.2 million, compared with a loss of $2.5 million in the prior-year quarter. Kern attributed the shortfall versus expectations primarily to the December hit to vehicle margins from accelerated inventory cleansing, along with dealer insurance product cancellation reserves.

Weather disruption and early-year demand signals

Wagner said the first half of January started strong, with “positive” short-term same-store sales trends in both new and used vehicles. However, he said widespread weather across the country late in January forced the temporary closure of more than 60 locations for at least one day, with disruptions persisting through the first week of February.

The company estimated the weather-related disruption resulted in a year-to-date miss of about 1,500 new and used unit sales, equating to roughly $13.5 million of gross profit. In response to an analyst question, Wagner said a “large portion” of those missed sales are often “just lost,” though the company hopes some customers could return in March, while noting it is not “banking on that.”

Wagner also addressed the timing of tax refunds as a potential demand catalyst, saying it was “still a little too early” to tie any improvement to that dynamic, and that any lift would likely be seen as refunds begin to hit at the end of February and accelerate into March. He noted strength in new fifth wheels and new entry-level motorized units, but “softness” in new and used travel trailer sales, which he suggested could benefit from tax-refund-driven demand.

2026 priorities: sales growth, cost efficiency, and Good Sam

Management reiterated three strategic priorities for 2026:

Grow new and used RV sales, including expanding exclusive RV brands, improving used procurement efficiency, partnerships such as Costco, and accelerating inventory turnover.
Create greater SG&A cost efficiency through centralization, systems, and process changes.
Accelerate Good Sam’s growth as a higher-margin, service-oriented pillar of the business.

Wagner said the company believes a large cohort of RV buyers from the 2020–2022 peak is approaching a “manageable equity position,” which could drive a multi-year wave of trade-ins and demand. He and the team said they are taking steps in 2026 to “cleanse and optimize” the inventory portfolio to prepare, while improving working capital efficiency by carrying “fresher inventory.”

The inventory strategy, however, is expected to create near-term pressure. Wagner said the company will take a “strict and at times aggressive approach” to move aged and non-core assets, and expects a near-term negative impact on gross profit per unit for both new and used vehicles.

Guidance, inventory turnover, and margin expectations

Camping World set 2026 adjusted EBITDA guidance of $275 million to $325 million. Wagner said the range reflects variability in industry retail sales expectations and includes the impact of inventory corrections and cost savings. Kern added that the company expects just over 50% of 2026 adjusted EBITDA to occur in the first half of the year.

Wagner explained that during the prior quarter the company had framed a minimum expectation of $310 million in adjusted earnings for 2026, but accelerating the inventory cleansing could reduce EBITDA by about $35 million in 2026, “particularly in the front half.” He also said the company has completed about $25 million of annualized SG&A reductions in recent months, and that a large portion of those savings should help offset some gross margin impact from faster turnover.

On inventory turns, Wagner said the company ended 2025 at roughly 1.7 turns on new inventory and about 3.1 turns on used inventory, versus historical preferences of about 2.2–2.4 turns for new and 3.4–3.5 for used. He framed inventory as both “the greatest risk” and “greatest opportunity” in a dealership model and emphasized carrying costs, depreciation, and opportunity cost of capital. He said improving new inventory turns from 1.7 to 1.8 would represent roughly $7 million of additional gross profit.

Management indicated most of the margin impact from selling through inventory would be in the first half of 2026, with a possibility it could extend into the third quarter. Wagner said the company expects combined new and used margins for 2026 to be down roughly 120 to 130 basis points year over year due to front-half pressure. He later provided gross margin expectations for the year of about 12.5% on new and about 17.5% on used, with a view that margins could improve toward historical levels in 2027 as the environment normalizes and turnover improves.

In discussing “non-core” assets, Wagner cited items such as discontinued floor plans or models no longer in production on the new side, and aged used units where financing advance rates tied to NADA values can force either higher down payments or lower dealer margins to close sales.

Balance sheet actions, dividend pause, and capital priorities

Management said the board changed the capital allocation strategy to prioritize balance sheet health, including pausing the dividend and retaining operating free cash flow to reduce net debt leverage and fund growth initiatives. Kern said the company ended the quarter with $215 million of cash and described the decision as tied in part to the company’s Up-C structure and the historical source of dividend funding. He said the company has already repaid an additional $50 million of long-term debt to date in 2026.

On leverage, Wagner told analysts the goal for 2026 is to get “as far below 4.7 as possible,” with an aim to get below 4.0 in 2027 as earnings improve.

Management also said the M&A pipeline “continues to lean” toward more stressed assets, and that the company remains disciplined. Executives noted one acquisition is signed and expected to close in March, describing it as fitting criteria including a low rent factor, small goodwill, and incremental brands.

Wagner closed by emphasizing a focus on customer service and said his goal is to make Camping World “the most trusted RV company in the world,” while working through short-term challenges to position the business for longer-term growth.

About Camping World (NYSE:CWH)

Camping World Holdings, Inc (NYSE: CWH) is a leading specialty retailer of recreational vehicles (“RVs”), RV parts and services, and outdoor lifestyle products. The company operates an extensive network of full-service RV dealerships, providing new and pre-owned RV sales alongside comprehensive maintenance, repair and warranty services. In addition to its dealership operations, Camping World offers a broad assortment of RV parts, accessories and gear through both its physical retail locations and e-commerce platform.

Beyond RV sales and service, Camping World’s offerings encompass outdoor cookware, apparel, camping and towing accessories under various proprietary and third-party brands.