Heineken shares slide after first-half profit miss

(Sharecast News) - Heineken shares were in the red on Monday morning, after a disappointing first-half operating profit that fell short of analyst expectations. The Dutch beer giant reported underlying organic operating profit growth of 12.5% to €2.1bn, missing the 13.2% pencilled in.

Underlying net revenue came in at €14.8bn, up 6% on an organic basis.

Beer sales for the period underperformed, rising by only 2.1% compared to the expected 3.4% growth.

The shortfall in sales was compounded by a substantial net loss of €95m, primarily due to a non-cash impairment on Heineken's €874m investment in China's CR Beer.

Heineken said the impairment was driven by a decline in CR Beer's share price amid concerns over consumer demand in China, rather than issues with its operational performance.

Heineken narrowed its forecast for operating profit organic growth for the year, now predicting a range of 4% to 8%, down from its previous guidance of low to high single-digit growth.

A significant area of concern was Europe, where Heineken saw a mere 0.2% profit growth, dramatically missing the expected 15.1%.

The board declared an interim dividend of 69 euro cents per share, in line with the half-year distribution made in 2023.

At 1022 CEST (0922 BST), shares in Heineken were down 7.41% in Amsterdam, at €84.98.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.