By Matthias Inverardi and Linda Pasquini
(Reuters) -Nivea maker Beiersdorf on Thursday forecast a slowdown in organic sales growth to a mid-single-digit percentage in 2024, after reporting a 10.8% increase in the past year.
Shares were down 3.9% to 132.4 euros at 0816 GMT.
Full-year sales rose to 9.5 billion euros ($10.3 billion) from 8.8 billion euros in 2022, in line with Beiersdorf’s guidance for low-double-digit organic growth, led by strong sales in its core brand Nivea and skincare brand Derma.
Nivea sales increased 16.2% year-on-year organically to 5.2 billion euros in 2023, while Derma sales rose 24% on the same basis, offsetting double-digit declines at luxury brands La Prairie and Chantecaille, the company said.
Consumer goods companies are battling pressure on household budgets following a period of high inflation and a surge in borrowing costs.
Beiersdorf, which typically sets cautious guidance, has also suffered from disruption in Asian travel retail markets, especially in China and South Korea, caused by the so-called “daigou” business, where resellers buy inventory at lower prices in other markets and resell it at a discount in the mainland.
Beiersdorf said it aimed to return to growth with La Prairie and Chantecaille in 2024, after organic sales fell 15.4% and 18.4% respectively in 2023.
The company also said it expected low-to-mid-single digit organic sales growth in its adhesives business this year, lower than the group target, after just 3.2% growth in 2023 due to challenging markets in Europe and Latin America.
It forecast its margin on earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) this year would come in slightly above 2023’s level.
($1 = 0.9229 euros)
(Reporting by Matthias Inverardi, Linda Pasquini and Eva Orsolya PappEditing by Miranda Murray and Mark Potter)
