Higher prices boost profits for Nivea maker Beiersdorf

Beiersdorf, the maker of Nivea cream and Labello lip balm, reported profit that topped analysts' estimates, aided by new twists on products and higher prices.

Earnings before interest and taxes, excluding some items, increased 17 per cent to €253 million in the three months through June, the company said on Wednesday.

The maker of cosmetics, shower gels and over-the-counter bandages widened its operating margin by more than a percentage point to 14.9 per cent, helped by price increases.

Beiersdorf chief executive Stefan Heidenreich has hired a new finance chief and is revamping familiar products to stay competitive in a sluggish global market for personal-care products.

The company reiterated its forecast for 3 to 5 per cent organic sales growth this year, even after the first-half increase was 1.4 per cent, missing analysts’ 2.3 per cent estimater.

A price increase the company enacted in the middle of the first quarter is helping bolster margins this year, Pierre Tegner, an analyst at Natixis Securities SAS, said in a note.

– (Bloomberg)