Estee Lauder Q2 2025 Earnings Report
Key Takeaways
The Estée Lauder Companies launched its new strategic vision, Beauty Reimagined, and reported its financial results for the second quarter ended December 31, 2024. Net sales decreased by 6% to $4.0 billion. The company is transforming its operating model to be leaner, faster, and more agile, while taking decisive actions to expand consumer coverage, step-change innovation, and increase consumer-facing investments to better capture growth and drive profitability.
Net sales decreased 6% to $4.0 billion. Organic net sales decreased 6%.
As Reported and Adjusted Gross margin expanded 310 basis points, to 76.1%, despite the decline in net sales, primarily driven by net benefits from the Company’s Profit Recovery and Growth Plan (“PRGP”).
Operating margin declined to (14.5)% from 13.4% in the prior-year period, primarily reflecting $861 million from goodwill and other intangible asset impairments and $181 million from charges associated with restructuring and other activities. Adjusted operating margin contracted 200 basis points, to 11.5%.
Diluted net earnings per common share decreased to net loss per common share of $1.64, compared with diluted net earnings per common share of $.87 in the prior-year period. Adjusted diluted net earnings per common share decreased to $.62.
Estee Lauder
Estee Lauder
Estee Lauder Revenue by Segment
Estee Lauder Revenue by Geographic Location
Forward Guidance
Given challenges in the Company’s Asia travel retail business, subdued consumer sentiment in China and Korea, and evolving global geopolitical uncertainty, the Company anticipates continued volatility and low visibility in the near term. Therefore, it is solely providing a fiscal 2025 third quarter outlook.
Positive Outlook
- The Company expects significant retail sales improvement in the fiscal 2025 third quarter, given the Company’s increased investments in consumer-facing activities.
- Moderate adjusted gross margin expansion, reflecting a favorable comparison due to a charge in the prior-year period triggered by the previous pull-down of production, partially offset by sales volume deleverage.
- The Company made with in-trade inventory levels in the first half of fiscal 2025, which we intend to maintain around current levels.
- In order to reignite our retail sales growth, we are strategically increasing consumer-facing investments around the world in the third quarter.
- We expect the benefits of the PRGP to both fund these investments and modestly offset the meaningful operating deleverage from the sales decline.
Challenges Ahead
- Strong double-digit net sales decline in the Company’s global travel retail business, reflecting the impacts from the overall challenging retail environment in Asia travel retail, including incremental pressures from changes in selling policies at several Korean retailers.
- This decline also reflects a difficult comparison to the prior-year period due to the resumption of replenishment orders.
- The Company anticipates continued volatility and low visibility in the near term.
- Subdued consumer sentiment in China and Korea
- Evolving global geopolitical uncertainty
Revenue & Expenses
Visualization of income flow from segment revenue to net income