Business Standard

Nestle net profits plunge 39% in 2015

Lower net profits were due to one-off impact from the disposal in 2014 of part of the L'Oreal stake

A bird flies past the logo at the headquarters of world food giant Nestle in Vevey

A bird flies past the logo at the headquarters of world food giant Nestle in Vevey

AFPPTI Vevey (Switzerland)
Swiss food giant Nestle said today its net profits had plunged by a lower-than- expected 39% last year due to a strong Swiss franc.

Net profit stood at 9.1 billion Swiss francs, lower than the 9.8 billion Swiss francs (8.2 billion euros, $9.1 billion) forecast by analysts.

The company said the lower net profits were "mostly due to the one-off impact from the disposal in 2014 of part of the L'Oreal stake."

The French cosmetics firm in 2014 bought back an eight-per cent stake that Nestle owned in L'Oreal, boosting the share of the family of heiress Liliane Bettencourt in the company to 33.3%.

But the Vevey-based firm said organic growth, the real measure of a company's performance, was good at 4.2 per cent and was "supported by increased momentum in real internal growth combined with continued margin improvement," according to chief executive Paul Bulcke.

Don't miss the most important news and views of the day. Get them on our Telegram channel

First Published: Feb 18 2016 | 4:02 PM IST

Explore News