Beiersdorf Reports 1.3% Organic Decline in Third-Quarter Sales, Reaffirms 2026 Outlook

Key Facts

Beiersdorf said on October 27 that group sales reached 2.4 billion euros in the third quarter of 2026, down 1.3% organically, and reaffirmed its outlook for the year. In the first nine months, sales totaled 7.3 billion euros, down 2.8% organically, according to the company’s quarterly statement. The group expects a low single-digit organic decline in 2026 sales, with EBIT margin excluding special factors of at least 11.8%. The reaffirmed outlook comes as group organic sales remained lower, with clear differences in performance across brands and segments. Derma and La Prairie posted growth in the quarter, while NIVEA and tesa sales declined organically.

In the consumer business, the company reaffirmed its expectation of a low single-digit organic decline in full-year sales and set its EBIT margin excluding special factors at at least 11.0%. Segment sales fell 2.9% organically in the first nine months, the company said. Chief Executive Vincent Warnery said consumer business performance improved in the third quarter compared with the first half. He added that Derma, which includes Eucerin and Aquaphor, again outperformed the market, while initial indicators for the launch of FACE+ in Europe showed positive results. The performance reflects a divergence within the segment between faster-growing skincare lines and sales pressure on NIVEA.

Derma sales grew 10.6% organically in the third quarter, with broad-based growth across regions and categories, Beiersdorf said. The company attributed the expansion to developing growth areas and science-based innovation, and said the Aquaphor launch in the body care category in North America got off to a strong start. La Prairie posted organic growth of 8.5% in the same period, with China the main growth driver. By contrast, NIVEA sales fell 4.9% organically, despite improved sales dynamics compared with the second quarter. The company said trade-related tensions and retailer destocking continued to weigh on quarterly sales, and that it expects these temporary factors to ease gradually by year-end.

Beiersdorf announced in August that it was revising its full-year outlook alongside the approval of an 18-month transformation plan for NIVEA. In that update, the group’s sales outlook shifted from stable to slight organic growth to a low single-digit organic decline, while the minimum EBIT margin of 11.8% was maintained. Warnery said the plan aims to return NIVEA to growth by 2027, and that the company is targeting profitable growth from 2028. The company also announced an increase of 100 million euros in media spending on NIVEA in the second half of 2026 compared with the same period a year earlier. In the first half, the company attributed the brand’s weak sales to factors including customer tensions, a delayed start to the sun season in Europe and trade destocking.

In the tesa segment, sales fell 4.3% organically in the third quarter, as a shortage of semiconductors weighed on the electronics business. Even so, the company kept its outlook for the segment at stable sales to slight organic growth, with EBIT margin excluding special factors slightly below the prior-year level. It warned that the chip shortage could put further pressure on tesa’s performance, and that the related negative mix effect poses a risk to the segment’s full-year EBIT margin. At group level, the company left unchanged its outlook for a low single-digit organic sales decline and an EBIT margin of at least 11.8%. The January–September statement was published on October 27, the date the company had previously listed in its financial reporting calendar.

In market trading, EL7 data showed BDRFY shares closed at 18.6 on October 26, with no currency specified for the price. Before the results announcement, Goldman Sachs cut its rating on the stock from Neutral to Sell on October 6 and lowered its 12-month price target to 73 euros from 82 euros. The bank cited concerns about NIVEA’s recovery and competition, according to Investing.com. Goldman also forecast a 3.1% organic decline in consumer-segment sales during 2026 and a 5.5% drop in NIVEA sales in the third quarter; these were analyst estimates made before the actual results. Beiersdorf said a discussion of the January–September statement would be held via webcast on October 27 at 09:00 Central European Time.