Oct 27, 2026 earnings call — Turnaround and marketing reset
Fourth quarter net sales were $333.3 million and management expects Q1 net sales to decline between 19% and 22%.
Revenue $0.3B (est $0.3B) · EPS $0.44 (est $0.40)
Key quotes
"Our priorities now are to restore the economics of the business, rebuild consumers' connection with our brands, and create a healthier foundation for sustainable growth."
"While it remains early and we are closely monitoring consumer response, we expect pricing elasticities to be well above one, weighted more heavily to the first half of the year."
"We redesigned our strategy and plans across all three brands and launched new marketing programs in September."
Analyst Q&A 5
Second-half sales improvement by brand
Q (Matt Smith · Stifel): Asked for more detail on topline expectations by brand and whether the second-half improvement applies to all brands or only some.
A: Management said Q1 will be the toughest quarter and they expect progressive improvement through the year, with the second half much stronger. They said the improvement is across all three brands, with the biggest inflection in Quest driven by heavier investment and new creative and marketing launched in September.
"I would say that the strongest improvement in the net sales decline rate is going to be on Quest." — Chris Bealer (CFO)
Price increase level and elasticity
Q (Jon Andersen · William Blair): Asked about the level and timing of the price increase and the assumptions and derivation behind pricing elasticity.
A: Management said the price increase is approaching double digits to restore gross margins and fund brand investments. They said elasticity is a key unknown, analytics must be done by channel, and because these are price points they have never had, they used conservative best estimates (prior price moves suggested about 1-1.2x elasticity).
"To really understand pricing elasticity, the analytics of it is by channel." — Joe Scalzo (CEO)
In-store displays and OWYN shelf recovery
Q (Jim Salera · Stephens): Asked whether higher price points limit large in-store placements and how OWYN will regain shelf space after quality-related assortment cuts.
A: Management said display decisions are more about a product's compelling proposition than price, and Quest's salty line is strong and likely to earn merchandising despite price levels. On OWYN they said retailers still see a compelling proposition; the company over-assorted and some non-core innovations failed, so they are resetting to core items, which are growing high single digits and sit at about 4% household penetration, and they expect the brand to return to growth.
"I would say first and foremost, no, we are not experiencing retailers believing that the brand does not have a compelling consumer proposition." — Joe Scalzo (CEO)
When marketing will show results; Rob Lowe role
Q (Rob Dickerson · U.S. Bancorp): Asked when they will know if the marketing is working and whether they have contingency plans, and also asked what role Rob Lowe will play going forward.
A: Management said success depends on clarifying consumer target and brand positioning, not just new innovation, and they expect a significant inflection for Quest in the second half with improvement from Q3 to Q4 and further into early 2028 as price effects and certain club rotations lapse. They said Rob Lowe was brought back to help recruit and reassure people (notably those cycling off GLP-1s) about weight maintenance, and he will be used in the new positioning across website, social, digital and influencer channels over the next months.
"My belief in Quest is we will see a significant inflection point on the brand as we move through the second half of the year." — Joe Scalzo (CEO)
Ingredients and clean-label plans
Q (Alexia Howard · Bernstein): Asked if they are reformulating ingredient lists on Atkins and Quest to meet clean-label expectations like OWYN.
A: Management said the three brands target different consumers: OWYN consumers care deeply about ingredients and wellness, while Performance Maxers want the best nutrition (high protein, low carbs, fiber) and do not focus on counting ingredients. They said they will not simply apply OWYN-style ingredient rules to Maxers because the consumers seek different things, and that difference is a portfolio strength.
"So, the OWYN passionate architects, they're all about ingredients." — Joe Scalzo (CEO)