Estée Lauder reports quaterly sales growth, EPS forecasts fall short of expectations

Estée Lauder turned in an upbeat set of quarterly results on Monday but painted a picture of its future that fell short of expectations on the Street.

The US make-up and skincare giant responsible for the likes of Mac and Too Faced saw net sales climb 12% year-on-year to $3.3bn, just ahead of analyst expectations for $3.25bn, on a constant currency basis, boosted by strong sales from its travel-related products.

Skincare sales grew 26% to $1.38bn, while make-up sales rose 2% to $1.36bn and fragrance and hair care sales jumped 9% and 6%, respectively.

Domestic sales rose 2% to $1.2bn, while European, Middle Eastern and African sales shot up 16% to $1.4bn.

Net income dropped 19% to $0.49 per share during the three months ended 30 June however, adjusting for restructuring charges, currency effects and last year's US tax overhaul, Estée Lauder turned in earnings per share of $0.61 per share, topping Wall Street expectations of $0.56.

Estée Lauder expects to report full-year adjusted earnings of $4.62 and $4.71 per share, falling short of analysts' estimates of $4.99 due to a 2% hit as a result of a stronger US dollar and a 1% drag from the adoption of new revenue accounting standards.

As of 1450 BST, Estée Lauder shares had climbed 4.08% to $141.49 each.