Henkel reports positive Q3, raises outlook

ROCKY HILL, Conn. — Third-quarter sales for Henkel rose 1.7% over the prior-year period, the company announced in its earnings release.

Third-quarter sales increased to 4.03 million euros (about $5.53 million). The company also said that after adjusting for foreign exchange, sales improved by 5.7%. Additionally, organic sales — which exclude the impact of foreign exchange and acquisitions/divestments — realized a 6.5% increase.

The company said the positive results were attributed to growth across the company's three core businesses: the laundry and home care category achieved organic growth of 3.8% (driven by price increases); the cosmetics/toiletries business sector rose 5.6%, thanks to significant volume increases; and the adhesive technologies sector saw an 8.7% jump in organic sales, generated through both volume increases and implemented price increases.

"Henkel continued its solid performance in the third quarter. Despite the challenging market environment, we outperformed once again our relevant markets in terms of organic sales growth," Henkel CEO Kasper Rorsted said. "All our business sectors contributed to this growth, and with further double-digit increases in our growth regions, we improved their share to 43% of our total sales. Despite higher raw material prices, we managed to improve profitability in all our business sectors."

Based on the third-quarter results, Henkel raised its outlook. The company now expects an increase in organic sales of between 5% and 6% (compared with a previous outlook of around 5%) and a 10% increase of adjusted earnings per preferred share.