Nov 12, 2021
Natura sales dip in Q3, updates guidance
Nov 12, 2021
Natura & Co, the Brazil-based owner of The Body Shop, Avon and Aesop, announced on Thursday a sales decline in the third quarter, but posted strong growth in the first nine months of the year.
Consolidated net revenue in Q3 was down 4.5 percent at constant currency rates at R$9.5 billion (US$1.75 billion). Over the first nine months of the year, net revenue was R$28.5 billion, up 14.4 percent vs the same period last year.
During the quarter, digitally-enabled sales reached 52 percent of total revenue, while adjusted EBITDA was R$819.1 million, with margin of 8.6 percent. Net income was R$272.9 million compared with R$381.7 million in Q3 of last year.
"Despite a very tough comparable vs last year, when we grew over 20%, and some persistent external headwinds related to the global pandemic, Natura & Co continues to progress on its key initiatives, attesting to the underlying strength of our business,” said Roberto Marques, executive chairman and group CEO.
“We again outperformed the global Cosmetics, Toiletries and Fragrances market on a year-to-date basis and versus pre-pandemic levels, all our brands and businesses posted growth over nine months and the Group's digitalization continued to advance. We also made major headway on the integration of Avon. With a further roll-out of Avon's new commercial model, continued deployment of social selling tools at Natura, new conversions to The Body Shop's new store concept and preparations for an entry onto the Chinese market at Aesop well underway, we have a number of initiatives to fuel growth in 2022 and beyond.”
By brand, in the quarter, Natura's brand power reached its highest level, while the Avon brand continued to gain strength. Avon International's net revenue decreased 14.3 percent in Q3 but was up 6.3 percent in the first nine months. Likewise, The Body Shop posted another solid performance, with net revenue up 0.4 percent in BRL in the quarter and 20.6 percent in the nine months. Aesop also posted another strong quarter, with net revenue increasing 12 percent in BRL in Q3 and 39.8 percent over nine months. Aesop continues to show strong momentum, posting revenue growth, notably in Asia and the Americas.
Looking ahead, the company updated its medium-term guidance and now expects to achieve adjusted mid-teens adjusted EBITDA margin in 2024, versus 2023.
The group also announced it is launching a share repurchase plan of up to R$1.5 billion and is evaluating switching its primary listing to the NYSE.
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