Market Commentary

Coty Surges on New, More Positive Forecast

Raza Akram
6 Feb 2024 · 1 minute read

Coty Inc's (COTY:US) stock surged by 5.7% in pre-market trading on Wednesday following the company's announcement of a more bullish view for the rest of the year.

The boost in guidance is attributed to the robust performance of its prestige fragrance business. According to the management, the company has experienced strong momentum in beauty demand across its key markets and categories, with a particular highlight on the success of the recent launch of its Burberry Goddess fragrance, which is setting records.

As a result of this positive momentum, Coty now anticipates that first-half like-for-like (LFL) sales will increase by 10% to 12%, up from the previous guidance of 8% to 10%. For the full fiscal year, the company has raised its LFL sales growth outlook to a range of 8% to 10%, up from the prior range of 6% to 8%.

Coty also modestly boosted its full-year EBITDA guidance.

The company also emphasized its commitment to delivering a best-in-class medium-term growth algorithm, including a mid-20s% EPS CAGR based on profit expansion, reduced interest expenses, and managing share count towards 800 million in the medium term. The company also mentioned its focus on active deleveraging and targeted capital returns.

Year to date, Coty's stock has seen a near 36% increase, outperforming the S&P 500, which has gained 15.7%.

Congressman Ro Khanna was selling the stock earlier this year.