Haleon Cuts Revenue Growth Forecast to 2.5% After Quarterly Growth of 2.6%
Key Facts
Haleon cut its forecast for organic revenue growth in fiscal 2026 to around 2.5%, after recording growth of 2.6% in the third quarter ended September 30, 2026. Reported revenue was £2,868 million, with pricing contributing 2.1 percentage points to growth, compared with 0.5 points from volume and mix, according to the company’s trading statement. The result was below the analysts’ average forecast of 3.2%, according to the consensus page Haleon published on October 21 based on 10 estimates. The company attributed the weaker performance to a decline in consumption of cough, cold and flu products, which reduced orders in North America, and to a reclassification of raw materials that affected Centrum products registered as medicines in China. Haleon said its priority was to “drive stronger volume growth and return consistently to delivering our medium-term guidance.”
The forecast cut marks a shift from the range the company announced in its half-year results, when it maintained its forecast for organic revenue growth of 3% to 5% in 2026. Organic growth was 2.6% in the first half, while North America recorded growth of 3.1% in the second quarter, following 1.0% in the first quarter. The group recorded annual growth of 3.0% in 2025, below its medium-term guidance for organic revenue growth of 4% to 6% a year. Haleon also said in its first-quarter statement that a weak cold and flu season had affected growth in that quarter by about 130 basis points, with growth reaching 2.2%. In its half-year results, the company maintained its forecast for high-single-digit growth in constant-currency adjusted operating profit, a guidance measure distinct from its revenue forecast revision.
In China, Haleon said it had been forced to suspend imports of the affected Centrum products, registered as over-the-counter medicines, until further notice because of the reclassification of raw materials. It said Centrum products registered as foods were unaffected and that the change “is not related to product quality or safety.” Products registered as medicines in China generated revenue of about £75 million in fiscal 2025, according to the company. The disruption therefore limits the direct impact to a specific category of Centrum products, while those registered as foods remain outside the measure. Haleon cited this factor alongside lower orders in North America among the pressures on third-quarter performance.
Category performance diverged in the third quarter: organic revenue in oral health rose 8.8% to £930 million, while respiratory health revenue fell 2.0% to £499 million. Geographically, organic revenue grew 2.5% in North America and 3.9% in Asia Pacific, while international markets recorded growth of 6.9%. By contrast, organic revenue in Europe contracted 0.6%. These results show variation across categories and regions during the same period in which the company said weaker consumption of cold and flu products reduced orders in North America. Haleon also placed oral health growth among the positive-performing categories, against a decline in respiratory health.
Haleon added that accelerating the rollout of its new route-to-market model in Brazil would reduce group net revenue by about £15 to 20 million in the fourth quarter of 2026. The phased implementation had originally been scheduled to extend across 2027, but the company decided to bring it forward to the final quarter of 2026, alongside the introduction of Brazil’s new tax framework. The expected impact is an additional factor affecting fourth-quarter revenue, alongside the pressures the company identified in North America and China. Meanwhile, Haleon maintained its forecast for high-single-digit growth in constant-currency adjusted operating profit in its half-year results. It also announced an additional £500 million for share buybacks and said the programme would be completed by the annual results announcement in February, without specifying a completion date.
Reuters reported on October 29 that Haleon shares fell by about 14% as the company cut its forecast and demand weakened. Investing.com said in a report published the same day that the stock was trading at 329.8 pence, down 11.8%, without describing that figure as the closing price or the final outcome for the session. Other data provided by EL7 refer to a close on October 28 at 10 and a previous-day close at 10.08, but do not specify the currency or price unit, so they cannot be directly compared with the pence price cited in the Investing.com report. Haleon is scheduled to report fiscal 2026 results on February 25, 2027, followed by its first-quarter trading statement on April 29, 2027. Both dates come after the revenue forecast cut, with the annual results announcement remaining the next specified milestone for investors.