MONTREAL – Denis Le Vot, the new head of BRP Inc., says he has no plans to veer the Ski-Doo maker off its profitable track after a big jump in earnings last year.
On the job for less than two months, Le Vot said Thursday that it’s steady as she goes at the company, given its seven per cent year-over-year revenue growth to $8.44 billion in the 12 months ended Jan. 31. Its net income for the year leaped 427 per cent to $340.4 million.
“I don’t see the point to make changes,” he told analysts on his first conference call following the departure of 22-year chief executive José Boisjoli. Until last month, Boisjoli was the only CEO the Sea-Doo maker had known.
Le Vot also pointed to the manufacturer’s forecast of revenue increases between roughly five and 8.5 per cent this year on the back of new snowmobile and off-road vehicles — side-by-sides in particular, with BRP’s latest Defender model a runaway success.
“We can hardly produce (enough) as the demand is going,” Le Vot said.
“I don’t think that it’s the moment for very quick and short-term changes,” he added, expressing faith in the company’s strategic plan through 2028.
“It gives me a little time in order to prepare with the team the next, longer-term plan, and this is where potentially there could be novelties. But this will come in due time.”
Before then, the former top executive at French carmaker Renault Group will have to keep an eye on skyrocketing oil prices sparked by the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz due to the war in Iran, about to enter its fifth week.
“Our clients are rather wealthy households,” Le Vot said, citing an average income above US$170,000 a year.
Given that insulation, there’s been no effect on demand so far, executives said. Nonetheless, BRP broadened its financial outlook for the coming year to accommodate a possible demand downturn and baked the higher price of oil into that guidance.
“There is probably a distance between what’s happening short-term and what the reaction of the market will be,” Le Vot said.
The company is “pretty much hedged” when it comes to its own fuel supply. But the higher cost of shipping — “an important part of our business,” with a dozen factories feeding 2,700 dealerships across the globe — will cut into its bottom line, said chief financial officer Sébastien Martel.
Other sectors served by BRP utility vehicles include agriculture and construction, which are poised to suffer from the ballooning price of fuels and fertilizer — the Persian Gulf is a critical source of both.
After a COVID-era sales boom sparked by an urge for outdoor recreation, the powersports industry declined sharply amid inflation. That led to overstocked warehouses and big discounts by competitors looking to clear their shelves, eating into BRP’s market share.
Now, that problem is ebbing.
“The situation has improved a lot over the last 12 to 18 months,” said Martel, who noted BRP’s inventory levels currently sit below 2019 levels as retail sales rise.
Le Vot said innovation will continue to be a key driver of demand, playing on the brand’s long-standing reputation for cutting-edge products.
A new high-performance Ski-Doo and a revamped platform across all its motor sleds mark two selling points. Another one is the growing focus on side-by-side vehicles that sport an enclosed cab, such as the new Defender, with more models in the works.
“Consumers are seeking automotive features more and more in their vehicles … heating, air conditioning, connectivity” — plus a 10-inch screen — said Martel.
That link to the automotive realm plays into Le Vot’s quarter-century of experience in that sector in both Europe and North America.
“There are similarities. This is a big-volume industrial business,” he said.
“You have the same challenges: the value of the brand, the relationship with the network, the quality of the product, the competitiveness of the company.”
Differences also abound. A passion for powersports and deep familiarity with the vehicles are essential, he said.
“You have to be attracted — and I am fully — by the products of the company. These are dream machines to me.”
On Thursday, BRP reported a fourth-quarter profit of $45.8 million versus a loss of $50.5 million in the same period a year earlier. It notched a 16 per cent increase in revenue to $2.46 billion.
On a normalized basis, BRP said it earned $2.21 per diluted share in its latest quarter compared with a normalized profit of $1.05 per diluted share a year earlier and analysts’ expectations of $2.03.
The Valcourt, Que.-based company also increased its quarterly dividend to 25 cents per share, up from 21.5 cents per share.
In its guidance for its 2027 financial year, BRP said it expects revenue to total between $8.90 billion and $9.15 billion. Normalized earnings per diluted share for the year are expected between $5.50 and $6.50.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 26, 2026.
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