David Dee Delgado
Coty (NYSE:COTY) fell 2.7% as its sales forecast for 2024 came in below expectations.
The company forecast annual revenue growth of neutral to 2%, below the 7% average analyst expectation. EPS is expected at between $0.44 and $0.47, versus the estimate of $0.47.
The beauty retailer said the market remains “a strong and outperforming category, with ongoing premiumization trends,” and expects to continue benefiting from those positive trends.
For the last quarter of its fiscal year, the company reported non-GAAP EPS of $0.01 that missed the average analyst estimate by $0.01, while revenue of $1.35B beat by $40M.
“Today’s FY23 results mark the third consecutive year that Coty has delivered strong financial, operational and strategic performance, and the twelfth consecutive quarter of results inline to ahead of expectations,” Chief Executive Officer Sue Nabi said in a statement. “Beauty demand remains resilient across our key categories and geographies, with no signs of tradedown.
The beauty category continues to be a standout in key markets like the U.S. as the only category among all consumer packaged goods and general merchandise categories to grow volumes in the last six months, Nabi said.
JPMorgan analysts led by Andrea Teixeira viewed the results as “neutral to slightly positive,” saying investors “will be pleased with beat and initial FY24 guidance.”
The firm has a Neutral rating on COTY.
Shares of COTY are up 22% year-to-date.