Gildan Activewear

Gildan Activewear makes basic clothing such as T-shirts, fleece, underwear, socks and intimates. It owns most of its factories, from yarn spinning to sewing, mainly in Central America, the Caribbean and Bangladesh, and this gives it low costs. Its brands include Gildan, Comfort Colors, American Apparel, Hanes, Bali, Maidenform, Playtex and GOLDTOE. Gildan bought HanesBrands on December 1, 2025, with cash, new shares and new debt.

It reports two kinds of sales. Wholesale sales go to distributors, screenprinters and global lifestyle brands, and these customers print logos and designs on blank clothing. Retail sales go to mass merchants, department stores, online retailers and consumers, mostly the Hanes brands. In Q3 2026, Wholesale was $735 million and Retail was $732 million of net sales.

The market doubts that Gildan's sales are as strong as they look. On June 16, 2026, the short seller Jehoshaphat Research alleged that Gildan sold too much stock into its distributors to make revenue grow, and that it moved almost half of its receivables off the balance sheet. The stock fell 18.8% that day. Gildan said its disclosure is accurate and kept its guidance.

Two more facts add to the doubt. Net sales in the first half of 2026 were lower than the pro forma sales of Gildan and HanesBrands a year earlier, because Gildan cut inventory at its customers during the integration. Debt is also high after the HanesBrands purchase, at 2.7 times pro forma adjusted EBITDA on September 27, 2026. Q3 2026 then confirmed part of the doubt: net sales were $1.47 billion, against guidance of about $1.65 billion, and both Wholesale and Retail fell against pro forma sales.

Gildan blames weaker consumer demand and supply problems in Retail. It cut its 2026 guidance to revenue of $5.4 billion to $5.5 billion and adjusted EPS of $3.70 to $3.80, and it withdrew its 2026 to 2028 targets. For the gap to close, three things must be true. Sales must stop falling against pro forma sales in Q4 2026 and early 2027, which shows that demand, not channel stock, is the cause.

Free cash flow must reach $700 million to $750 million in 2026, so that Gildan can buy back shares under its new buyback program and still bring leverage back within the 1.5 to 2.5 times target by the end of 2027, as it plans. The HanesBrands integration must deliver about $100 million of cost savings in 2026 and about $250 million a year by the end of 2028. The full-year 2026 report in about February 2027 and the new long-term outlook at an investor day in spring 2027 are the next tests. If sales stabilize, the gap can close over the next four to six quarters.

If sales keep falling, the doubt about the sales quality can stay for longer.

1. Oct 26, 2026Passed

   HanesBrands Australia sale closes and debt fallsClosing in the second half of 2026 with the cash used to repay term loans passes; a delay into 2027 or a lower price fails.Outcome: Gildan completed the sale on October 26, 2026, for about A$700 million in cash, and it said that it will use the net proceeds to repay debt.
2. Nov 5, 2026Failed

   Q3 2026 results: sales against pro forma and the short seller's claimNet sales near $1.65 billion with Wholesale and Retail both growing against pro forma sales pass; sales well below guidance or another fall against pro forma fails.Outcome: Net sales were $1.47 billion, well below guidance, and Wholesale and Retail both fell against pro forma sales.
3. Feb 5, 2027 · est.Pending

   Full-year 2026 results and 2027 outlookRevenue of at least $5.4 billion, free cash flow of at least $700 million and Q4 sales that stop falling against pro forma sales pass; missed guidance or another fall against pro forma sales fails.

Every passed and failed checkpoint across all picks

• November 5, 2026Gildan reported Q3 2026 results. Net sales were $1.47 billion, below its guidance of about $1.65 billion and 9% below pro forma sales of $1.61 billion a year earlier. Wholesale fell 10.8% and Retail fell 7.0% against pro forma sales, because of weaker demand and supply problems in Retail. Adjusted diluted EPS was $1.54, helped by about $177 million of tariff refunds, and free cash flow was $606 million. Gildan cut its 2026 guidance to revenue of $5.4 billion to $5.5 billion, adjusted EPS of $3.70 to $3.80 and free cash flow of $700 million to $750 million. It withdrew its 2026 to 2028 targets and plans a new outlook at an investor day in spring 2027. It renewed its buyback program for up to 5% of its shares from November 9, 2026.
• October 26, 2026Gildan completed the sale of HanesBrands Australia to BBFIT Investments, an entity of BB Retail Capital, for about A$700 million (about $490 million), paid in cash at closing. Gildan said that it will use the net proceeds to repay debt.
• October 8, 2026The US Federal Trade Commission closed its investigation into Gildan and the distributor S&S under the Robinson-Patman Act. The investigation was about a contract clause that stopped Gildan from giving S&S's competitors the same prices and discounts. Gildan and S&S changed the clause. Gildan paid no penalty, made no settlement and admitted no wrongdoing.

Last earnings

November 5, 2026

Next earnings

Expected about February 5, 2027. The company has not confirmed the date.

• 40-FAnnual report for the period ended Dec 28, 2025Filed February 26, 2026 · gil-20251228
• 40-FAnnual report for the period ended Dec 29, 2024Filed February 19, 2025 · gil-20241229_d2

Every filing on SEC EDGAR (CIK 1061894)

• A short seller alleged in June 2026 that Gildan pushed too much stock into its distribution channel and that it sells almost half of its receivables to move them off the balance sheet. Gildan rejects the claims. Q3 2026 sales were well below guidance, so the market can believe the claims more, and law firms look for shareholders for possible securities claims.
• Retail customers buy carefully. In Q3 2026, Retail sales were 7.0% lower than pro forma sales a year earlier, because of weaker demand and problems with product availability and service. HanesBrands' Retail business now gives about half of net sales, so a weak US consumer has a larger effect than before.
• Debt is high after the HanesBrands purchase. Net debt was $4.14 billion on September 27, 2026, 2.7 times pro forma adjusted EBITDA, against a target of 1.5 to 2.5 times. Gildan restarted buybacks and says that leverage can stay above the target for a time, with a return within it by the end of 2027. Lower sales and free cash flow can delay this.
• The HanesBrands integration must give about $250 million of yearly cost savings over three years. Gildan closes and moves factories and distribution centers, and this can cause supply problems or one-time costs.
• Most of Gildan's factories are outside the US, in Central America, the Caribbean and Bangladesh. US tariff policy changed many times in 2025 and 2026. A new tariff on these countries, or a change to the CAFTA-DR treatment, can raise costs again.

Gildan funds itself with unsecured notes, bank term loans, a revolving credit facility and, since May 15, 2026, a US commercial paper program of up to $1.6 billion. The debt went up when Gildan bought HanesBrands on December 1, 2025. Read more

Yield at the current rate

2.7% (current annual rate, at today’s price)

Dividend yield

2.6% (last 12 months, at today’s price of CA$51.01)

Paid per share

CA$1.344 in the last 12 months (4 payments)

Current annual rate

CA$1.376 (CA$0.344 × 4 a year)

Latest ex-dividend date

August 20, 2026, CA$0.344 per share

Dividends per share by year

From 2020 to 2025, the dividend grew by about 43.2% a year. From 2015 to 2025, the dividend grew by about 14.6% a year.

One-off payments far above the usual dividend are left out of these numbers.

Source: company filings and market data, read on November 13, 2026. The ex-dividend date is the first day a buyer no longer gets the next payment.