Fitness franchisor F45 Training Holdings Inc. FXLV, -61.54% saw its shares nosedive 61.5% in Wednesday trading after the company announced the departure of its chief executive and founder Adam Gilchrist; a 45% workforce reduction, equal to 110 layoffs; and a sharp reduction in the number of new franchises and studios expected in 2022. Ben Coates, an independent director, will serve as interim CEO while a permanent replacement is found. Gilchrist will continue to serve as a director on the board. A new board chair will be determined. After the layoffs SG&A expenses are expected to be $15 million to $20 million per quarter, which is up to half of what the expenses were in the first quarter of 2022. “While we expect growth to continue, market dynamics are having a greater than expected impact on the ability of franchisees to obtain capital to develop new F45 locations,” said Chris Payne, chief financial officer at F45 in a statement. The company now expects full-year net new franchises sold to be between 350 and 450, down from previous guidance of 1,500. Full year initial studio openings are expected to be between 350 and 450, down from prior guidance for 1,000. And the full-year revenue outlook is now between $120 million and $130 million, down from $255 million to $275 million previously. The FactSet consensus is for revenue of $213.5 million. “The revised guidance assumes that the $250 million of growth capital provided by two previously announced franchise financing facilities, which F45 had arranged for franchisees to open additional studios, will not be available despite strong demand from franchisees,” the release said. Cowen analysts suspending their stock rating, price target and estimates in light of the news. And Baird downgraded F45 to neutral from outperform, slashing its price target to $2 from $12. “The substantial reduction to full-year guidance raises questions about F45’s ability to attract franchisee interest and to execute on the previously stated whitespace opportunity (for 23,000 global units vs. 1,866 at Q1-end),” analysts said. F45 shares began trading in July 2021. The stock has plummeted 87.6% in 2022, finishing Wednesday at $1.35.
