Haleon cuts growth forecast as shares fall up to 15%

Haleon lowered its annual revenue growth target to 2.5% after weaker demand for cough, cold and flu remedies, according to Business Live. The company had previously forecast growth of 3% to 5%. Its shares fell as much as 15% in morning trading, reaching 318p. The consumer healthcare company also reported third-quarter organic revenue growth of 2.6%, which chief executive Brian McNamara said was below expectations. McNamara attributed the shortfall in part to weaker consumption of cough, cold and flu products and softness across some categories. Haleon recorded a 0.6% revenue decline across Europe. Business Live said poor sales of Centrum, Haleon's multivitamin supplement brand, drove the regional decline; Haleon attributed the sales performance to “weaker category trends.”

The forecast cut followed results that fell short of the company’s expectations. The headline from Traders Union likewise describes Haleon’s annual sales guidance as reduced amid weaker cold and flu demand. The Financial Times headline characterises Haleon as following Reckitt with a guidance cut as cold and flu rates fall; it does not provide further detail about Reckitt in the headline. RBC analyst James Edwardes Jones assessed Haleon's third-quarter results as “weren’t great” and said the guidance reduction was “worse,” according to Business Live. Those comments accompanied the sharp share-price drop, while the company’s figures showed both below-expectations quarterly growth and a lower annual target. Haleon separated from pharmaceutical company GSK in 2022. The company’s latest update centres on lower-than-expected category demand and the resulting change to its revenue outlook; the figures reported by Business Live put the revised forecast 0.5 percentage points below the bottom of its previous 3% to 5% range.