Puig Achieves 8% Increase in First-Quarter Sales
MADRID (Reuters) -Puig, the Barcelona-based company behind perfume brands Rabanne, Carolina Herrera and Jean Paul Gaultier, reported an 8% rise in first-quarter sales on Monday, beating analysts' expectations.
The company reported 1.21 billion euros ($1.38 billion) in sales during the first three months of the year, beating a FactSet consensus of 1.19 billion euros cited by Renta4's analyst in a recent note.
The results come as analysts expect global beauty companies' revenue growth to slow, and with the looming threat of U.S. tariffs that the Spanish company priced in to its annual revenue estimate.
Puig maintained its expectation for a slowdown in revenue growth to 6%-8% this year following an 11% sales increase during 2024 partly due to tariffs in the U.S., one of its biggest markets.
"These expectations include the impact of U.S. tariffs at currently anticipated levels," the company said in a presentation.
Puig may have benefited in the first three months from stockpiling in anticipation of tariffs, but in the medium term it could be hit by the economic impact of trade protectionism, said Renta4 analyst Pablo Fernandez.
Sales in its core fragrance and fashion business grew by 10% in the first quarter, while the company's make-up division fell 4.2%.
Competitor L'Oreal also reported a rise in first-quarter sales, beating expectations for slower growth, as strong demand for its creams and perfume in Europe helped counter challenging conditions in the U.S.
Half of Puig's revenue comes from Europe, the Middle East and Africa and a third from the Americas, where the company's sales grew 12% during the first quarter.
(Reporting by Corina Pons; editing by Charlie Devereux and Jan Harvey)
