John Meloun’s work as CFO of Xponential Fitness Inc. (NYSE: XPOF) is now paying off.
The Irvine boutique fitness franchiser is one of few new public companies that have seen shares rise since their 2021 initial public offerings.
Of the 11 local companies that went public via traditional IPO in 2021, 10 saw an average decrease of 60% in their shares. Many other OC companies that went public in 2021 and 2022 via special purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs, have fared even worse.
Shares in Xponential, Orange County’s 29th largest public company, have more than doubled since their initial public offering two years ago.
On top of overseeing a successful IPO, Meloun led Xponential through multiple acquisitions and convertible stock offerings, which earned him a CFO of the Year Award from the Business Journal last year.
“Moving into 2023, we’ll still be in a very high, heavy growth phase,” Meloun told analysts during the company’s fourth-quarter conference call last month.
At press time, shares in Xponential were $29.16 apiece for a $1.5 billion market cap.
Analysts rewarded Xponential with higher price targets and “buy” ratings following the company’s fourth-quarter results posted this month.
Fourth-quarter revenue for Xponential rose 44% from the year prior to $71 million, beating the Zacks consensus estimate. The company’s revenue includes franchisee royalties, along with sales of equipment and other services.
Growth in fourth-quarter revenue was primarily due to “member visits and associated systemwide sales [being] at all-time highs” as well as increasing “franchise license sales … as we open more studios domestically and sell more franchise licenses internationally,” Meloun told analysts.
Openings for new franchisees are expected to reach around 540 to 560 for fiscal 2023, “the highest number of studio openings in our company’s history,” Meloun told analysts.
The company, which currently operates over 2,600 studios globally, is already set to double its location count with the over 5,400 total licenses it has sold.
For the full fiscal year 2022, Xponential’s revenue grew 58% from the year prior to $245 million.
Due to the company’s increasing memberships and customer visits, officials project that full year revenue for 2023 will range between $285 to $295 million.
“The momentum so far into 2023 is very promising,” Meloun told analysts.
