Puig Shares Drop after Withdrawal of Some Batches of Charlotte Tilbury Spray

A woman walks past the logo of Luxury beauty and fashion company Puig (PUIG.MC) at the entrance of its headquarters in Barcelona · Reuters
A woman walks past the logo of Luxury beauty and fashion company Puig (PUIG.MC) at the entrance of its headquarters in Barcelona · Reuters
TT

Puig Shares Drop after Withdrawal of Some Batches of Charlotte Tilbury Spray

A woman walks past the logo of Luxury beauty and fashion company Puig (PUIG.MC) at the entrance of its headquarters in Barcelona · Reuters
A woman walks past the logo of Luxury beauty and fashion company Puig (PUIG.MC) at the entrance of its headquarters in Barcelona · Reuters

Shares in Puig dropped sharply in early Friday trade after the luxury beauty and fashion company said its Charlotte Tilbury brand was voluntarily withdrawing select batches of its make-up setting spray.
Puig, which listed in Madrid in May, said on Thursday the withdrawal was expected to impact performance of its makeup segment, but was not expected to have a "material" impact on its overall full-year performance.
The company said that a routine product testing found an isolated quality issue in a limited number of batches, which did not make the product unsafe.
It added that no other Charlotte Tilbury products were affected.
Makeup and skincare brand Charlotte Tilbury, known for its "Pillow Talk" make-up collection, was one of Puig's top three brands last year, according to its annual report.
Makeup contributed 18% of its net income in 2023, while skincare accounted for 10%.
JPMorgan analysts said the withdrawal could have as much as mid single digit additional impact on makeup like-for-like growth in the fourth quarter.
They added there could be a potential spillover into the first quarter of 2025, depending on the speed of product replacement.
The firm, which also owns perfume brands Rabanne, Carolina Herrera and Jean Paul Gaultier, said it was confident in achieving its goals for 2024, including a stable EBITDA margin compared with 2023.
Shares fell as much as 9% but recovered some losses and by 0902 GMT were down 3.5%, among top fallers on the Europe-wide STOXX 600 index.



Birkenstock Results Beat on Resilient Demand, Forecasts Margin Recovery

A Birkenstock shoe is displayed at Birkenstock shoe store in London, Britain, October 11, 2023. (Reuters)
A Birkenstock shoe is displayed at Birkenstock shoe store in London, Britain, October 11, 2023. (Reuters)
TT

Birkenstock Results Beat on Resilient Demand, Forecasts Margin Recovery

A Birkenstock shoe is displayed at Birkenstock shoe store in London, Britain, October 11, 2023. (Reuters)
A Birkenstock shoe is displayed at Birkenstock shoe store in London, Britain, October 11, 2023. (Reuters)

Birkenstock beat market expectations for fourth-quarter results on robust demand for its pricey footwear and forecast a recovery in margins in fiscal 2025, sending the company's shares up 7% on Wednesday.

With fresh styles becoming a priority for consumers, Birkenstock's sandals and closed-toe clogs have drawn new customers both at its own stores and at retailers.

The company bypassed steep discounting trends evident during the holiday shopping season, which Birkenstock executives said was off to a strong start globally.

"The expansion of ranges into more closed-toe silhouette has helped boost revenue, given that they offer multi-season wear," Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said.

Germany-based Birkenstock's average selling prices across its product range were up 8% in fiscal 2024, in part due to higher sales of clogs, the company said, adding that closed-toe styles now made up about a third of its business.

The company has invested in expanding its global store presence and increasing manufacturing capacity this year to meet demand.

While it led to a 330-basis point drop in gross margins in fiscal 2024, Birkenstock forecast a recovery in margins in fiscal 2025 as it ramps up production from new facilities.

The company reported fourth-quarter revenue of 455.8 million euros ($478.27 million), compared with the average analyst estimate of 439.2 million euros, according to data compiled by LSEG.

However, Birkenstock's forecast for fiscal 2025 revenue to increase between 15% and 17% was below estimates of 17.5% growth.

"It would appear with this incredibly healthy growth, the company is choosing to adopt a conservative approach that they expect to be able to meet and beat," BMO Capital Markets analyst Simeon Siegel said.

On an adjusted basis, Birkenstock earned 0.29 euro per share, beating estimates of 0.26 euro.