The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE: EL) saw its shares drop without a parachute Thursday, having released financial figures early in the morning.
The New York-based company today reported net sales of $14.29 billion for its fiscal year ended June 30, 2020, a decrease of 4% from $14.86 billion in the prior-year period. Excluding the impact of currency translation, net sales decreased 3%.
The net sales decline was driven by retail store closures as a result of the global spread of COVID-19 that was partially offset by the tremendous acceleration online. Net sales from the Company’s acquisition of Have&Be Co. Ltd. contributed approximately one percentage point of growth to reported net sales.
EL reported net earnings of $0.68 billion, compared with net earnings of $1.79 billion last year. Diluted net earnings per common share proved to be $1.86, compared with $4.82 reported in the prior-year period. Excluding the negative impact of currency translation, adjusted diluted earnings per common share decreased 22% to $4.16.
CEO Fabrizio Freda said, “Fiscal 2020 was a year without parallel, as we delivered record sales and exceptionally strong adjusted EPS growth in our first half and navigated with agility through an unprecedented pandemic in our second half.
“The second half also marked a period of profound pain as tragic events in the United States highlighted the systemic racial injustice that has plagued our society for far too long.”
EL shares began Thursday plummeted $17.20, or 8.1%, to $195.30.