© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: A bottle of Cointreau, the orange-flavoured triple sec liqueur, is displayed at the Carre Cointreau in the Cointreau distillery in Saint-Barthelemy-d’Anjou, near Angers, France, February 8, 2019. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe
By Dominique Vidalon
PARIS (Reuters) -French spirits group Remy Cointreau on Thursday stuck to its full-year 2023/24 forecast for lower sales and profitability, saying the key U.S. market would not see a sales rebound before the next financial year.
The maker of Remy Martin cognac and Cointreau liqueur reiterated it expects 15%-20% decline in organic sales, while current operating margin would see a “contained decrease” thanks to a cost-cutting plan of around 100 million euros, of which 25 million euros have already been achieved in the first-half.
Operating profit for the six months to Sept. 30 came at 169.1 million euros ($185.64 million), an organic 43% fall, in line with expectations for a 43.4% decline in a company-compiled poll of 16 analysts.
The company already reported first-half sales fell 22.2% to 636.7 million euros.
“Our first-half results were heavily impacted by developments in the U.S. market, which has faced cyclical headwinds, including high inventories linked to a sharp normalisation of consumption, an unprecedented promotional environment and rising interest rates,” CEO Eric Vallat said in a statement.
“Against this backdrop, we are staying the course, convinced that our value-driven strategy remains underpinned by favourable medium and long-term trends,” he added.
Remy Cointreau also confirmed all its financial targets for 2029-30.
($1 = 0.9109 euros)
