P&G misses the mark with fourth-quarter sales

Procter & Gamble's stock took a hit on Tuesday after the American consumer goods giant underwhelmed investors with its quarterly sales figures.

P&G's fourth-quarter earnings came in better than expected, but revenues missed the mark by some $200m, causing shares to tank 5.9% to $159.89 by 1017 in New York.

Net sales in the fourth quarter totalled $20.5bn, down from $20.6bn a year earlier and shy of the $20.7bn consensus forecast, with unfavourable FX movements knocking two percentage points off the top line, offsetting improvements in volumes and pricing.

Nevertheless, core earnings per share improved by 2% year-on-year to $1.40, ahead of the $1.37 expected by the market.

Despite the top-line miss, chairman and chief executive Jon Moeller said his company "met or exceeded" targets for organic sales growth, core EPS growth, cash generation and shareholder returns.

For 2024 as a whole, P&G generated $84bn in sales, a 2% increase on 2023, while core EPS rose 12% to $6.59.

"As we look forward to fiscal 2025, we expect to deliver strong organic sales growth, EPS growth and free cash flow productivity – each in-line with our long-term growth algorithm," Moeller said.

P&G expects to grow sales by 2% to 4% in fiscal-year 2025, while FX is expected to have a one percentage point negative impact. Core EPS is projected to rise by 5% to 7%, equating to a range of $6.91 to $7.05.