Key Highlights

  • First-quarter 2026 revenue fell 4.2% year-over-year to $1.35 billion, with total gross margin slipping 62 basis points to 29.8%.
  • Combined new and used vehicle unit sales dropped 6.5% to 28,682, though new-vehicle average selling prices rose 3.9% to $38,618.
  • Net loss attributable to Camping World widened to $16.4 million ($0.26 per diluted share) from $12.3 million a year earlier.
  • Total retail locations fell to 199 as of March 31, 2026, from 209 a year earlier, after consolidating 10 stores while opening two and acquiring one.

Camping World Holdings (NYSE:CWH) reports second-quarter 2026 results on July 29, closing a first half in which revenue and unit volumes kept slipping even as management insisted the trend was turning. The Lincolnshire, Illinois-based RV retailer posted a wider first-quarter loss, a smaller dealership footprint and continued reliance on floor-plan financing, while wholesale shipment data show an industry still searching for a bottom.

Why CWH Is Back in Investors' Crosshairs

Camping World has spent much of 2026 trying to convince investors that the worst of the RV retail downturn is behind it. The company confirmed on July 17 that it will release second-quarter 2026 financial results after the market closes on July 29, with a call the following morning hosted by Chief Executive Officer Matthew Wagner and Chief Financial Officer Tom Kirn. That timing matters because Camping World's first-quarter release, published April 29, showed a business still contracting on nearly every top-line metric even as management flagged improving order momentum entering the spring selling season. Whether that improvement shows up in the second-quarter numbers is now the central question for the stock.

Inside America's Largest RV Retailer

Camping World Holdings operates the country's largest network of recreational-vehicle dealerships, combining new and used RV sales with parts, service, finance and insurance products, and the Good Sam family of membership, roadside-assistance and protection-plan offerings. As of its first-quarter 2026 report, the company operated RV sales and service locations across 44 states in two reporting categories: RV and Outdoor Retail, covering vehicle sales, products and service, and finance and insurance income; and Good Sam Services and Plans. The company is the managing member of CWGS Enterprises, LLC, an "Up-C" structure in which Camping World Holdings owned 61.4% of the operating entity as of March 31, 2026, with the remainder held as non-controlling interests.

What CWH's Own Numbers Say About the RV Cycle

Camping World's first-quarter release offered a mixed but data-rich picture of an industry cycle at an inflection point. Revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2026 was $1.35 billion, down $58.9 million, or 4.2%, from $1.41 billion a year earlier. New vehicle revenue fell 5.4% to $587.7 million on 15,218 units sold, a 9.0% unit decline, while used vehicle revenue slipped 4.4% to $403.8 million on 13,464 units, down 3.4%. Combined new and used unit sales fell 6.5% to 28,682. Average selling prices moved in opposite directions: new vehicle ASPs rose 3.9% to $38,618, while used vehicle ASPs declined 1.0% to $29,990. Same-store units fell 6.0% combined across 186 comparable stores, with same-store revenue down 4.2% to $1.22 billion.

Wagner said the "year-over-year trajectory of our new and used unit volume continued to improve as we progressed through March and into late April," a claim not independently verifiable from the release's tabular data. It sits against a weaker industry backdrop: the RV Industry Association's May 2026 shipment survey showed total wholesale RV shipments of 22,900 units, down 18.7% from May 2025, with year-to-date shipments through May off 14.4% at 138,160 units versus 161,373 a year earlier. Those figures track manufacturer wholesale shipments rather than Camping World's retail sales, but they confirm the broader cycle remains under pressure even as the company points to sequential improvement.

Margins, Loss and the Good Sam Business

Gross profit was $403.3 million, down 6.1%, with total gross margin contracting 62 basis points to 29.8%. New vehicle gross margin fell 148 basis points to 12.2% as the average cost per new unit rose 5.7%, outpacing the ASP gain; used vehicle gross margin declined 91 basis points to 17.7%. SG&A fell 7.5% to $358.3 million, improving 135 basis points as a share of gross profit to 88.8%, which management credited to lower compensation, advertising and commission costs.

Good Sam Services and Plans generated $48.5 million in revenue, up from $46.2 million, at a 61.0% margin, down 67 basis points; Good Sam Club added $10.2 million at an 88.4% margin. Net loss was $26.7 million consolidated, with $16.4 million attributable to shareholders versus $12.3 million a year earlier, or $0.26 per diluted share. Adjusted EBITDA was $28.0 million, down from $31.1 million.

Balance Sheet: Floor Plan, Debt and Cash

Cash stood at $199.8 million as of March 31, 2026. Floor-plan notes payable, which finance new and used RV inventory, rose to $1.67 billion from $1.60 billion at year-end 2025 and $1.32 billion a year earlier, reflecting a larger inventory base. Total long-term debt was $1.42 billion. Net debt was $1.34 billion, and the leverage ratio improved to 5.6x trailing-twelve-month Adjusted EBITDA from 8.1x a year earlier. Operating activities used $65.6 million in cash, an improvement from $232.5 million a year earlier.

Store Footprint and Where Growth Could Come From

Camping World ended the quarter with 199 total retail locations (198 RV dealerships and one service center) down from 209 a year earlier. The company consolidated 10 stores to improve cost efficiency while opening two new locations and acquiring one dealership. For full-year 2026, management reiterated guidance of Adjusted EBITDA between $275 million and $325 million, citing three priorities: growing unit volume, accelerating Good Sam's growth, and further SG&A efficiency.

Risks Specific to Camping World

Camping World's results remain exposed to RV affordability, a function of interest rates and discretionary spending; the company's own disclosures cite financing availability for the business and its customers as a key variable. Floor-plan borrowings carry a variable rate, so elevated short-term rates pressure interest expense, which rose 19.2% year-over-year. Reliance on a concentrated set of manufacturers for inventory adds supplier risk, and continued store consolidation, while framed as cost efficiency, also signals a shrinking footprint where demand has not recovered. A full valuation allowance remains against certain deferred tax assets, and the Up-C structure adds complexity to per-share economics versus peers.

Outlook

An optimistic case rests on the sequential improvement management described in March and April, materially lower net debt leverage than a year ago, and reaffirmed full-year guidance. A base case would see second-quarter results broadly track the softer first-quarter trend, with modest same-store improvement offset by continued new-vehicle margin pressure. A more cautious scenario would have industry-wide shipment weakness, as reflected in RVIA's May data, persist into the second half of 2026, pressuring unit volumes and carrying costs further. None of this should be read as a prediction of share-price direction; it is simply the range of outcomes the July 29 report will clarify.

Conclusion

Camping World Holdings (CWH) enters its July 29 second-quarter 2026 report with a business that has cut costs and reduced leverage but has not yet returned to unit growth. Management's commentary suggests a spring pickup, while RVIA's shipment data show the broader RV cycle still contracting year-to-date. Investors will be watching whether the improving order trends cited in March and April are visible in the hard numbers when the company reports.

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