Following a year of declining sales, Estée Lauder has returned to growth after the launch of its ‘Beauty Reimagined’ turnaround plan.
In its fiscal second quarter, the beauty conglomerate posted net sales of US$4.2 billion (A$6.02 billion), up 6% from last year.
“In this pivotal year, Beauty Reimagined has invigorated our business as we execute the biggest operational, leadership, and cultural transformation in our history,” Estée Lauder president and CEO Stéphane de La Faverie said.
This was primarily driven by its skin care brands, where sales increased by 6% year-over-year to $1.2 billion.
The company’s fragrances also saw strong 6% growth to $812 million, with gains across all regions, led by high single-digit growth from Tom Ford, Le Labo and Kilian Paris.
Its Makeup brands decreased 1%, driven by Estée Lauder and offset by MAC.
The company also increased net earnings from a loss of $1.64 per share the same time last year to 44 cents per share.
Estée Lauder expects organic net sales to grow 1% to 3%, expecting growth in all regions except the Americas, where growth is expected to remain flat.
“On its one-year anniversary, we raise our fiscal 2026 outlook confident in the strength of our turnaround, even as our second half reflects previously-expected headwinds and now-greater consumer-facing investments, as we expect to restore organic sales growth and expand our operating margin for the first time in four years,” de La Faverie said.
It also expects an unfavourable impact of $100 million on profitability, due to the impact of tariffs and still expects net workforce reductions of 5,800 to 7,000 as part of its restructuring.
At the time of writing, Estee Lauder (NYSE: EL) stocks have tumbled 19.19% to $96.66. Its market cap is $34.83 billion.
