Meal-kit maker HelloFresh has today forecast a decline in 2026 revenue and profit, sending its shares lower, impacted by weakness in its ready-to-eat business, challenging economic conditions and bad weather.
The company's shares were down 11% this morning, having earlier declined by 12.7% to an all-time low.
The German food company reported in February lower-than-expected preliminary group revenue for 2025 and said it would cease operations in Italy and Spain, citing the lack of a viable path to profitability.
For 2026, the firm expects a further decrease in revenue of around 3% to 6%, dragged by prolonged effects of operational and manufacturing bottlenecks in the US on consumer retention in its ready-to-eat segment.
It also expects AEBITDA for the 2026 financial year to be between €375m and €425m in constant currency, saying that first quarter winter weather disruptions across Europe and the US caused a one-off negative impact of around €25m.
"We currently do not expect material impacts from the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, provided the situation resolves quickly," the company said in its annual report.
"In the event of a longer lasting conflict, our business could be impacted due to higher costs from inflation and worsening consumer sentiment," it added.
HelloFresh has seen a shift in customer demand as people move from cooking meals from scratch during the Covid-19 pandemic to buying more convenient ready meals which only need reheating.
In response, the company is refocusing its core business on ready-to-eat goods, which so far have not performed as expected.
After HelloFresh's stock surged during lockdowns along with other food delivery companies, the pandemic-era darling has lost about 90% of its market value since peaking in August 2021.
