Game, Set, Match Poverty.

Well, everyone’s favorite retired tennis robot officially lost his billionaire status yesterday after On Holding suffered the worst trading day in company history.

One of Nike’s newest tormentors plunged as much as 22%, erasing $52 million from Federer’s fortune in the blink of an eye. According to the official Forbes List, the loss booted him from the billionaire club and left him stranded with just $952 million. 

Absolutely devastating. The man may have to spend the rest of the week living like someone with only nine hundred and fifty-two million dollars.

So yes, Federer has actual skin in this extremely expensive shoe game. He reportedly owns 2.5% of On and helped create “The Roger,” a sneaker for people who want everyone at Whole Foods to know they own a pickleball paddle. 

The investment also helped push Federer into the billionaire club last year, nearly three years after he retired from tennis. Unfortunately, Mr. Market called the ball out and drop-kicked him back into nine-figure poverty. Before you make any jokes, have some compassion… groceries are expensive. 

Based on the stock chart, you’d think Federer had been sewing the shoes himself with child labor in his basement. The quarter was nowhere near that ugly. 

Revenue actually lifted 13.5% and direct-to-consumer sales jumped 34.3%... the kind of growth Phil Knight would punch Lebron’s mother for.

But expectations can be a b****, can’t they?

Investors already penciled in $1.08 billion in sales, and On responded to the miss by trimming its full-year growth forecast from at least 23% to the low-20% range. I guess with valuations where they are right now, institutions are punishing a 3% shortfall the way Saudi Arabia handles shoplifting. 

The problem was mostly American… our national specialty (relax, it’s just a joke). The good ole US of A accounts for more than half of On’s business. Wholesale growth fell from 25.1% to 12.7% as retailers stopped loading the shelves with both hands. 

Management tried to pull a Michael Scott and put on a “brave face” by  saying some of that weakness was intentional. On held back wholesale shipments to keep stores from drowning in inventory.

Clearly no one bought that narrative.

As for Federer, I have a feeling he’ll somehow scrape together dinner tonight.

At the time of publishing this article, Stocks.News doesn’t hold positions in companies mentioned in the article.