Beiersdorf Aktiengesellschaft (ETR:BEI) reported a weaker first half of 2026 as continued pressure at NIVEA outweighed growth in its Derma and Healthcare businesses. The company lowered its full-year outlook for its consumer segment and group sales, while outlining an 18-month plan intended to restore NIVEA to sustainable growth.
Group net sales totaled EUR 4.952 billion in the first half, representing an organic decline of 3.5%. Net sales in the consumer business fell 4.0% organically to EUR 4.113 billion, while tesa sales declined 0.9% organically to EUR 839 million. Group EBIT excluding special factors was EUR 768 million, with an EBIT margin of 15.5%, compared with a margin of 14.0% for full-year 2025. Profit after tax remained broadly stable at EUR 558 million, and earnings per share rose to EUR 2.52, supported by the company’s share buyback program.
NIVEA decline prompts expanded turnaround effort
Temporary factors included customer conflicts in Europe, sun-care seasonal phasing, trade destocking and comparisons related to the company’s fourth-quarter 2025 innovation calendar. Warnery said these issues affected shipments to retailers more than consumer demand. NIVEA sellout remained positive year to date, although it trailed the market and company expectations.
Beiersdorf had previously begun shifting marketing support away from premium face care and toward body care and deodorants, while increasing its focus on accessible face care products and locally adapted offerings. The company said the measures produced early improvements in sellout, but not at a scale sufficient to restore global growth.
The next phase of the strategy will run for 18 months and will emphasize affordability, value for money, local relevance, faster innovation and consumer-facing marketing. Beiersdorf plans to invest an additional EUR 100 million in consumer-facing activity during the second half compared with the same period in previous years.
“Bringing NIVEA back to growth will require disciplined execution and time,” Warnery said. He added that the company would monitor the turnaround plan closely and seek to broaden NIVEA’s growth drivers across categories, markets and consumer segments.
In response to analyst questions, Warnery said the company does not see a need to reduce prices across NIVEA’s core portfolio, where most products are priced between EUR 2 and EUR 10. Instead, it plans to support those products with new launches, media spending and in-store activity. He said the company expects NIVEA sell-in and sellout to be broadly aligned by the end of 2026, following the resolution of customer disputes covering 92% of Beiersdorf’s European business.
Derma growth continues; La Prairie returns to growth
The Derma business, which includes Eucerin and Aquaphor, delivered organic sales growth of 7.8% in the first half and 7.4% in the second quarter. The company cited innovation and expansion into new markets and categories as key drivers.
In the second quarter, Derma sales grew 71% in Brazil and 62% in China. North American face care sales rose 40% organically, according to the company. Beiersdorf said Eucerin became the third-largest dermocosmetics brand in Brazil and the leading anti-pigment brand in China.
Aquaphor launched a new daily hydrating body lotion and cream range in the U.S. in July. The company described it as its largest U.S. launch to date. The range began with three retail partners and is scheduled for nationwide U.S. retail distribution by year-end.
La Prairie returned to organic sales growth of 2.2% in the second quarter after a 14.9% decline in the first quarter, as retail disruptions in the U.S. and China travel retail mostly faded. China domestic sales rose 12% organically in the quarter. In September, La Prairie plans to introduce Swiss Pristine, an entry-level line priced from EUR 180 to EUR 300, which the company said will support consumer recruitment and selected expansion into specialty beauty retail in North America.
Healthcare brands Hansaplast and Elastoplast grew 6.2% organically in the second quarter and 4.0% for the first half. Growth was supported by wound-care innovations, including extensions of the company’s second-skin protection range.
Margins pressured by costs, mix and investment
Consumer EBIT declined to EUR 632 million, with a margin of 15.4%, down 60 basis points from the prior-year period. Chief Financial Officer Astrid Hermann said gross-margin pressure was partly offset by discipline in overhead costs.
Consumer gross margin declined 100 basis points to 61.0%. Higher raw-material costs, limited volume growth and lower factory utilization weighed on profitability, while foreign exchange had a 60-basis-point negative effect. The shift toward more accessible NIVEA products also created a dilutive mix effect, partly offset by Derma’s growth.
tesa’s EBIT was EUR 136 million, below the prior-year level, reflecting weaker electronics contributions, higher input costs and investment in future growth. The unit returned to 2.5% organic sales growth in the second quarter after a first-quarter decline, supported by industrial, trade, converting, printing and packaging operations. Electronics remained pressured by destocking and weaker demand in Greater China.
Guidance reduced for 2026; growth targeted from 2027
Beiersdorf now expects a low-single-digit organic sales decline for the consumer business in 2026, compared with prior guidance for flat to slightly positive growth. It expects the consumer EBIT margin excluding special factors to be at least 11%, down from 13.6% in 2025.
- Group organic sales are expected to decline by a low-single-digit percentage.
- Group EBIT margin excluding special factors is expected to be at least 11.8%, versus 14.0% in 2025.
- tesa guidance was maintained at flat to slightly positive organic sales growth, with an EBIT margin slightly below the prior-year level.
The company expects geopolitical tensions, particularly the Middle East crisis, to continue affecting consumer sentiment, consumption and input costs. It also expects the NIVEA rebalancing to pressure mix in the near term.
Looking beyond 2026, Beiersdorf said it expects to return to net sales growth in 2027 while stabilizing its EBIT margin. Beginning in 2028, it targets sales growth above the market and steady EBIT-margin improvement. The company also reiterated its aim to generate free cash flow of at least 50% of EBITDA in the medium term and said it remains committed to a EUR 750 million share buyback program.
About Beiersdorf Aktiengesellschaft (ETR:BEI)
Beiersdorf Aktiengesellschaft, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and distributes consumer goods in Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Australia. It operates in two segments, Consumer Business and Tesa Business. The Consumer Business Segment offers skin and body care products. The Tesa Business segment provides adhesive tapes and self-adhesive solutions for industries, craft businesses, and consumers. This segment offers its system solutions to the automotive, electronics, printing and paper, and building and construction industries.
