Still betting on Nvidia? Our AI picked this stock instead; it’s up 96%+ THIS MONTH
Investing.com -- Douglas, the beauty retailer, reported slightly lower Q2 sales at €939.0m, a 2% year-on-year (yoy) decrease, and 1% below the Vara consensus of €946.9m.
Shares fell 1.2% in today’s trading session.
This drop in sales was attributed to market volatility that led to lower footfall and fewer online visits, as well as unfavorable calendar-related factors. Both in-store and E-commerce sales saw a decrease, with store sales dropping by 0.1% yoy and E-commerce sales decreasing by 5.6% yoy.
The adjusted EBITDA for Q2 came in at €122.4m, a 16% yoy decrease, but 3% higher than the Vara consensus of €118.5m. This corresponds to an adjusted EBITDA margin of 13.0%, a decrease of 220 basis points yoy. Despite the dip in Q2 figures, Douglas maintains its guidance for 2024/25 that was lowered in March.
The company expects to generate around €4.5bn in sales, achieve an adjusted EBITDA margin near 17%, and report a net income of around €175m. The average net working capital is projected to stay below 5% of sales.
Douglas has decided not to provide new mid-term guidance due to the current global macroeconomic and political landscape, as well as market sentiment in the beauty industry. Instead, a revised mid-term forecast will be given with the full-year results in December. The company expects recovery in the global economic landscape and the premium beauty market in the medium term.
In response to the weakening market sentiment, Douglas has implemented measures to stabilize both sales and earnings. These measures include cost optimization initiatives and stricter management of working capital.
Q2 sales, excluding the divested online pharmacy Disapo, declined by 1.0%. The company mentioned that this quarterly performance was impacted by the absence of an additional trading day due to the 2024 leap year (29 February 2024), as well as the shift of the Easter holiday into Q3. However, sales in April 2025 exceeded those of the prior year.
This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.