UBS Group AG: Global brand awareness and purchase intention both on the rise, ONON.US has huge growth potential.

UBS Group AG releases a research report, reiterating its "buy" rating for Under Armour (UA.US) with a target price of $85. UBS Group AG believes that Under Armour's continuous focus on innovation, performance, athletes, sports, direct sales model, and maintaining a high-end full-price brand image will drive industry-leading sales and profit growth. The bank forecasts that Under Armour's sales, adjusted EBITDA, and EPS compound annual growth rates over the next five years will reach 20%, 24%, and 20% respectively, and expects the strong growth momentum to continue, making Under Armour one of the fastest-growing sportswear brands globally. UBS Group AG also believes that this will surprise the market and drive up its price-to-earnings ratio. The latest survey data has reinforced UBS Group AG's confidence: the bank believes that the 11th UBS Evidence Lab Annual Global Sportswear Survey shows that Under Armour has enormous growth potential. The main reason is that the company's brand awareness still has significant room for improvement, and current trends indicate favorable growth momentum. The survey shows that Under Armour's global brand awareness is only 15%, far below brands like NIKE, Inc. Class B (91%), Adidas (53%), and Lululemon (36%). Additionally, Under Armour's brand awareness has increased from 13% last year to 15% this year. UBS Group AG believes that the improvement in brand awareness is a key reason why Under Armour is expected to gain more market share by 2026. Under Armour's global purchase intent and net promoter score performance is strong: the company's brand recognition is not only increasing, but the company is also converting many consumers who have heard of the brand into actual customers. Under Armour's global intent to purchase sport shoes increased by 34% year-on-year, while global intent to purchase sportswear soared by 122%. Under Armour's global net promoter score increased from 25% last year to 39% this year, currently ranking sixth globally. These data indicate that Under Armour is able to consistently win consumer favor in a repeatable way and establish lasting connections with them. Four ways Under Armour becomes a top global sportswear brand: UBS Group AG's discussions with investors indicate skepticism in the market about whether Under Armour can achieve its vision of becoming a top global sportswear brand. However, the survey shows that Under Armour has succeeded in the following four aspects: 1. Global consumers are increasingly recognizing Under Armour's high-quality products, with the proportion of respondents agreeing with the quality of Under Armour's products jumping from 31% last year to 47% this year. 2. Under Armour's recognition as a well-known brand continues to increase. About 40% of surveyed global consumers consider Under Armour a well-known brand, up from 31% a year ago. 3. The recognition of Under Armour as a sports brand continues to increase. The proportion of global consumers who believe Under Armour is suitable for sports has risen from 42% last year to 46%. 4. Respondents continue to view Under Armour as an innovative brand. The proportion of global consumers who believe Under Armour is an innovative brand is 44%. Although it has decreased by 200 basis points year-on-year, it still ranks third. The brand still has shortcomings in a certain aspect, but UBS Group AG believes this presents an opportunity: the survey shows that the proportion of global consumers who find Under Armour products easy to find in physical stores or online has decreased from 27% last year to 25%. Under Armour's 25% score is one of the lowest among all brands. The bank believes that this provides an attractive opportunity for Under Armour to expand its direct sales channel network.