NORTH ASIA

Sales in North Asia contracted, -0.9% like-for-like and -5.8% reported.
North Asia continued to be impacted by the reset in Travel Retail following the change in policy regarding daigous. In mainland China, where the beauty market remained flat, L’Oréal grew +5.4%, significantly strengthening its leadership – boosted by the Group’s continued investment in the quality of its offline distribution in a truly O+O (offline plus online) market. In Hong Kong, momentum was buoyant, as tourist activity resumed. In Japan, L’Oréal significantly outperformed a dynamic market, driven by Consumer Products and L’Oréal Luxe.
In North Asia, growth was fuelled by L’Oréal Dermatological Beauty, where all three core brands grew in double-digits led by CeraVe, and Professional Products, where Kérastase continued to advance strongly. Both Divisions significantly outperformed their respective markets. L’Oréal Luxe continued to outperform its market, with particularly strong momentum in premium skincare thanks to the remarkable success of Helena Rubinstein and Takami; Couture brands like Yves Saint Laurent and the recently launched Prada Beauty also contributed. The Consumer Products Division was supported by the rebound of its makeup brands, Maybelline New York and 3CE Stylenanda.
Offline and online channels both contributed to growth in the region.

SAPMENA – SSA ⁵

Sales in SAPMENA-SSA had outstanding growth of +23.2% like-for-like and +16.4% reported.
In SAPMENA, growth was broad-based as each category, Division, and country advanced in double-digits. Mix-driven value and volume both contributed strongly.
Fragrances was the most dynamic category, followed by skincare and makeup; haircare was boosted by continued premiumisation.
The stand-out performers by Division were Dermatological Beauty, where CeraVe continued its successful expansion, and Consumer Products, where all brands grew in double-digits.
By country, the Australia-New Zealand and GCC⁶ clusters, as well as India were the top-three growth contributors, all advancing in excess of +20%.
Sales progressed faster online than offline, driven by India and Vietnam.
SSA saw record growth with all countries advancing in double digits. Skincare and makeup led category growth; Consumer Products and Dermatological Beauty were the top performers by Division.

LATIN AMERICA

Sales in Latin America achieved outstanding growth of +24.4% like-for-like and +22.8% reported.
L’Oréal maintained exceptional momentum with strong contributions from both value and volume. The Group outperformed a dynamic beauty market.
All categories reported double-digit growth. Skincare, makeup, and the all-important haircare category were particularly dynamic.
By Division, the stand-out performers were Consumer Products, where all key brands and categories performed strongly, and Dermatological Beauty, where La Roche-Posay and CeraVe continued their outstanding growth.
Growth was broad-based across all countries. The top-two contributors were Brazil and Mexico; the latter reported spectacular growth in excess of 30%.
The successfully implemented omnichannel strategy resulted in well-balanced online and offline growth.

IMPORTANT EVENTS DURING 01/10/23-31/12/23 AND POST-CLOSING

STRATEGY

• In January, L’Oréal’s venture capital fund BOLD (“Business Opportunities for L’Oréal Development”) acquired a minority stake in Timeline, a Swiss biotech company developing innovative solutions for longevity in food, beauty, and health.
• In January, L’Oréal announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire the remaining shares in Gjosa, a Swiss startup pioneering water fractioning. L’Oréal had previously partnered with Gjosa to launch the award-winning Water Saver showerhead.
• In December, L’Oréal announced the acquisition of Lactobio, a leading probiotic and microbiome research company based in Denmark.      
• In January, L’Oréal’s Venture Capital fund BOLD, closed a minority investment in the luxury Chinese fragrance brand, To Summer, to expand into global markets and offer global consumers curated olfactory experiences inspired by eastern art, culture, philosophy and landscapes.

MANAGEMENT

• In February, L'Oréal announced the appointment of Ezgi Barcenas as Chief Corporate Responsibility Officer to continue the Group’s environmental and societal transformation. She succeeds Alexandra Palt who will be leaving her responsibilities on April 1, 2024, having established, and anchored the foundations of this transformation during her 12 years with the Group. Alexandra Palt remains CEO and administrator of the L’Oreal Foundation.

RESEARCH, BEAUTY TECH AND DIGITAL

• In January, Nicolas Hieronimus and Barbara Lavernos gave the Opening Keynote speech at CES in Las Vegas, making L’Oréal the first beauty company to be invited to do so. The Group won a record seven CES Innovation Awards.
• In November, L’Oréal presented its latest tech-enabled offerings and partnerships at the sixth annual China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai, one of the world’s largest trade shows, with a record 18 beauty tech innovations spanning inclusive, sustainable and personalised Beauty Tech solutions.
• In November, L’Oréal announced an industry-first partnership with Cosmo International Fragrances to develop a Green Sciences-based extraction process to revolutionise the art of fine fragrance creation.

ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL AND GOVERNANCE PERFORMANCE

• L’Oréal is the only company in the world to have received for the eighth consecutive year a triple ‘A’ score from the global environmental nonprofit CDP. L’Oréal is recognized as part of companies leading the way in environmental transparency and demonstrating outstanding performance in addressing climate change, protecting forests and ensuring water security.
• L’Oréal received a rating of 20 – Low Risk as part of the assessment carried out by Sustainalytics. This score ranks the Group in fourth position within the “Personal Products” sub-industry and in the top 10 companies in the “Household Products” industry.
• L'Oréal and renowned companies from the beauty, scent and personal care sector gathered for the first time in the Value of Beauty Alliance to highlight the positive impact of the industry. The Alliance members presented in Brussels to key stakeholders from the European Union Institutions a new report titled ‘What is the Value of Beauty?’.
• In January, a consortium of 15 cosmetics industry companies, including L'Oréal Groupe, announced that they have joined forces to create the TRaceability Alliance for Sustainable CosmEtics (TRASCE) to enhance traceability in key ingredient and packaging supply chains across the industry.

2023 RESULTS

Audited financial statements, certification in progress.

Operating profitability at 19.8% of sales

Consolidated profit and loss accounts: from sales to operating profit.

Gross profit, at 73.9% of sales, improved by 150 basis points.
Research & Innovation expenses increased by 10 basis points to 3.1% of sales.
Advertising and promotional expenses increased by 90 basis points to 32.4% of sales, equivalent to an increase of more than 10% year-on-year.     
Selling, general and administrative expenses increased by 10 basis points to 18.5% of sales.
Overall, operating profit increased by +9.2% to 8,143.3 million euros, and amounted to 19.8% of sales, an improvement of 30 basis points.

Operating profit by Division

The profitability of the Professional Products Division came out at 21.6% of sales, up 30 basis points.
The profitability of the Consumer Products Division came out at 20.5% of sales, up 70 basis points.
The profitability of the Luxe Division came out at 22.3% compared to 22.9% in 2022.
The profitability of the Dermatological Beauty Division came out at 26.0%, up 60 basis points.
Non-allocated expenses amounted to 979.4 million euros.

Net profit

Consolidated profit and loss accounts: from operating profit to net profit excluding non-recurring items.

Net finance costs amounted to 113 million euros.
Sanofi dividends totalled 420.9 million euros.
Income tax excluding non-recurrent items amounted to 1,958 million euros, representing a tax rate of 23.2%. 
Net profit excluding non-recurring items after non-controlling interests stood at 6,487 million euros.
Earnings per share2, at 12.08 euros, increased by +7.3%.
Non-recurring items after non-controlling interests⁸ amounted to 302 million euros net of tax.
Net profit after non-controlling interests came out at 6,184 million euros, increasing by +8.4%.

Cash flow statement, Balance sheet and Cash position

Gross cash flow amounted to 7,999 million euros, an increase of +9.7%.
The working capital requirement increased by 395 million euros.
At 1,488.7 million euros, investments represented 3.6% of sales.
Net cash flow⁹, at 6,116 million euros, increased by 23.9%.
The balance sheet remains strong, with shareholders’ equity amounting to 29.1 billion euros.

Proposed dividend at the Annual General Meeting of 23 April 2024

The Board of Directors has decided to propose a dividend of 6.60 euros per share at the shareholders’ Annual General Meeting of 23 April 2024, an increase of +10.0% compared with the dividend paid in 2023. The dividend will be paid on 30 April 2024 (ex-dividend date 26 April at 0:00am, Paris time).

Share capital

At 31 December 2023, the capital of the company is formed by 534,725,475 shares.

The L’Oréal Board of Directors met on 8 February 2024, under the chairmanship of Jean-Paul Agon and in the presence of the Statutory Auditors. The Board approved the consolidated financial statements and the financial statements for 2023.

This news release may contain some forward-looking statements. While the Company believes that these statements are based on reasonable assumptions as of the date of publication of this press release, they are by nature subject to risks and uncertainties which may lead to a discrepancy between the actual figures and those indicated or suggested in these statements.”