Italian drinks group Campari posted a 4.9% drop in operating profit in the first quarter, broadly in line with expectations, due to a tough comparison with early 2023, when sales were boosted by purchases ahead of price rises.
The company's operating profit came in at €151.5 million ($163 million) in the first three months of the year, it said in statement.
New CEO Matteo Fantacchiotti struck a positive tone and said the outlook for the year remained unchanged.
"We entered the year yet again with momentum and a resilient performance in a low season quarter and despite the expected tough comparison base", Fantacchiotti said in a statement.
"We remain confident about continued growth momentum to deliver profitable growth", he added.
Campari's Milan-listed shares were up 5% by 09:30 GMT, extending earlier gains after the results.
Quarterly Highlights
Like-for-like sales edged up 0.2% to €663.5 million in the period, helped by growth in demand for its aperitifs Campari and Aperol.
Figures compared with a €654 million LSEG consensus for sales and a projection of €150 million for the adjusted operating profit.
Sales in the EMEA increased 2.2% during the quarter and accounted for 45% of total group sales.
In Italy, sales declined 4.9% year on year as it was impacted by the high comparison base, particularly for Aperol, while Campari registered growth of 11.8%.
Sales increased by 12.4% in Germany, driven by Aperol and Sarti Rosa. Non-alcoholic aperitif Crodino also witnessed growth alongside Ouzo12, the company added.
In France, the company reported sales growth of 4.5% thanks to Aperol, Riccadonna Prosecco, Picon, Trois Rivières and Crodino, while the UK registered a 3.6% decline, mainly due to a tough comparison base.
News by Reuters, additional reporting by ESM.
