Estee Lauder has today cut its full-year sales forecast, signaling a bigger hit to demand for its skincare and makeup products as the Delta variant brought in a line of fresh lockdowns in certain markets.
Renewed restrictions in Eastern markets which included China, a key revenue generating region for the company, dampened demand for lipsticks and foundations as a resurgence in Delta variant cases led to closures of brick-and-mortar stores.
The Clinique cosmetics maker now expects net sales to rise between 12% and 15% in fiscal 2022, down from its previous estimate of a 13% to 16% increase.
Net sales rose to $4.39 billion in the first quarter, from $3.56 billion a year earlier.
Analysts on average had expected sales of $4.25 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
