Beiersdorf Aktiengesellschaft ETR: BEI executives used the company’s 2026 annual general meeting to outline a strategic reset for its core NIVEA brand, defend capital allocation priorities including a new share buyback program, and highlight innovation initiatives ranging from pigmentation treatments to microbiome-based acne solutions.
Virtual AGM format and voting
Supervisory Board Chairman Reinhard Pöllath opened the meeting from the company’s research center, noting the AGM was again held virtually and that an in-person meeting is planned “at the latest for 2028.” Pöllath reported that 168,925,065 shares were represented, corresponding to 77.05% of share capital, excluding treasury shares of around 9.99%.
Shareholders approved all management proposals, including the proposed dividend and remuneration report. Pöllath announced the following approval levels:
- Dividend proposal: 99.6%
- Discharge of the Executive Board: 97.11%
- Auditor appointments (including sustainability reporting audit): 99.99%
- Remuneration report: 78.14%
CEO Warnery: 2025 performance and 2026 outlook
CEO Vincent Warnery framed Beiersdorf’s growth ambitions around science-led innovation, citing its patented active ingredient Thiamidol. He said 10 leading dermatologists had recently confirmed its effectiveness against hyperpigmentation and that it has produced a “EUR 500 million” business for Beiersdorf. Thiamidol was launched in additional markets last year, including China, India, and the U.S., he said.
Warnery described 2025 as a difficult year amid geopolitical and economic shifts and a sharp slowdown in the global skincare market. He said global skincare market growth slowed from about 5% in 2024 to 1.5%–2% in 2025, and is currently around 1%. He also acknowledged a “significant” share price decline after the company communicated a challenging 2026 outlook.
For 2025, Warnery reported:
- Turnover of EUR 9.9 billion and organic growth of 2.4%
- Consumer segment turnover of EUR 8.2 billion with organic growth of 2.5%
- Derma business turnover reaching EUR 1.5 billion with organic growth of 11.7%
- Healthcare turnover around EUR 300 million with organic growth of 9.3%
- tesa turnover of EUR 1.7 billion with organic growth of 1.8%
However, Warnery highlighted weaker areas. La Prairie’s turnover fell organically by 4.5% to EUR 478 million, which he attributed to volatility in the luxury market, particularly in China. NIVEA organic growth was 0.9% to EUR 5.5 billion, which he said fell short of expectations and reflected factors including the market slowdown, a repositioning in China, and key innovations launching only in the second half of the year.
On shareholder returns, Warnery said the Executive Board and Supervisory Board proposed a dividend of EUR 1 per share for 2025 and announced a new share buyback program of up to EUR 750 million over the next two years. For 2026, he forecast “flat to slightly positive” organic sales growth and an operating EBIT margin “slightly below the previous year’s level,” later quantifying “flat” as a range of approximately 0% to 2% organic growth.
NIVEA “rebalancing” plan
Warnery said the company is “rebalancing” NIVEA to restore growth, describing the initiative as a key lever to regain trust. Grita Loebsack, President of NIVEA, said the approach is data-driven and based on analysis of turnover, market share, competition, pricing, and consumer perception, alongside input from country teams.
Warnery and Loebsack outlined three primary levers:
- Portfolio focus: Shifting investment across personal care, deodorant, and face care, which Loebsack said represent around 60% of NIVEA sales.
- Local relevance: Granting more autonomy to key markets—China, the U.S., Brazil, Japan, India, and Indonesia—within a global framework to adapt products and communications.
- Pricing and accessibility: Reinforcing NIVEA’s value-for-money positioning, including smaller pack sizes such as sachets in markets where they are prevalent.
Loebsack cited a deodorant push in Europe, including increased media spending in the first quarter, improved shelf placement with retailers, and innovation such as the Derma Control range. She said that after market share losses in 2025, the company is seeing “positive growth in many European countries” early this year.
On pricing strategy, she highlighted Thailand, where Beiersdorf introduced 7-milliliter sachets of the LUMINOUS630 Skin Glow Serum, saying the sachet format helped double the turnover of the Luminous range in the country. Later, she clarified “sachet” as a small product pack designed for affordability in certain Asian markets.
Innovation, venture capital, and microbiome research
Warnery said Beiersdorf is investing behind innovations such as Thiamidol and an epigenetic active ingredient, EPICELLINE. He also previewed an acne-focused innovation based on restoring microbiome balance and said a launch under the Eucerin brand is planned for later this year.
In a discussion on microbiome research, R&D lab manager Benjamin Ahle said Beiersdorf has conducted systematic microbiome research since the 1990s and has carried out “over 120” microbiome studies since 2014, supported by publications and a patent portfolio. He said the 2022 acquisition of S-Biomedic added specialized expertise in probiotics. S-Biomedic founder Bernhard Paetzold compared the skin microbiome to an ecosystem that suffers when balance is lost, and said the company’s approach for acne-prone skin targets aggressive variants of Cutibacterium acnes.
Executive Board member Oswald Barckhahn addressed questions on the company’s corporate venture capital arm, saying the second-generation fund totals EUR 100 million, following a first fund of EUR 50 million. He said the unit has a dedicated team of four and is invested in 13 startups and five venture capital funds, with an allocation of 80% to startups and 20% to venture funds.
Shareholder questions: share price, buybacks, luxury, and product details
Multiple shareholders and investor representatives pressed management on the share price decline and the 2026 forecast wording. Warnery attributed underperformance to the weak skincare market and operational issues in NIVEA and luxury, including a guidance adjustment. He said early signs from NIVEA initiatives were appearing in sell-out data but were not yet reflected in net sales, while also pointing to continued Derma strength and “positive signals” from La Prairie.
On capital allocation, management defended the share buyback as a value-creation tool and a signal of confidence, saying the company believes its market valuation is currently too low.
Luxury brand La Prairie drew pointed questions on scientific positioning and ingredients. Barckhahn said La Prairie’s “Caviar Micronutrients” are “a particularly rich source of more than 300 different nutrients,” and that premium pricing is supported by ingredient efficacy, formulation quality, and service levels. He said no specific regulatory risks related to labeling were known to the company and noted La Prairie also relies on proprietary technologies such as the “Exclusive Cellular Complex.” He attributed luxury market weakness primarily to external factors, citing a premium skincare market decline of 2% in 2025 and travel retail in Asia down 13%.
In response to product-category questions, Loebsack said Beiersdorf uses “deodorants” as a generic label but distinguishes deodorants from antiperspirants, noting antiperspirants contain aluminum. She said antiperspirants with aluminum represent 55% of the global market, and that in Germany aluminum-free deodorants account for 50% of the market. She also stated Beiersdorf uses aluminum “within the allowed concentrations by the law” and that, citing independent studies, the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment had withdrawn a prior restriction related to aluminum-containing products.
On disclosures requested by a shareholder, Loebsack provided a breakdown of NIVEA deodorant category turnover, stating: NIVEA Deo totaled EUR 1.6 billion, comprised of EUR 260 million deodorants and EUR 1.3 billion antiperspirants; 8X4 deodorants were EUR 62 million; and Hidrofugal was EUR 49 million, “exclusively antiperspirants.”
Management also addressed operational questions around e-commerce and tesa. The company said e-commerce accounted for almost 17% of Consumer segment sales and approximately 2.2% of tesa sales, defining e-commerce as revenues where the purchase decision is made online. For tesa’s automotive business, management said it generates more than EUR 241 million in sales from high-tech adhesive solutions.
Several shareholders criticized technical issues with the virtual waiting room audio. The company stated shareholder questions were recorded by stenographers and said the system used for the event was hosted in France and not used to train AI systems.
About Beiersdorf Aktiengesellschaft ETR: BEI
Beiersdorf Aktiengesellschaft, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and distributes consumer goods in Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Australia. It operates in two segments, Consumer Business and Tesa Business. The Consumer Business Segment offers skin and body care products. The Tesa Business segment provides adhesive tapes and self-adhesive solutions for industries, craft businesses, and consumers. This segment offers its system solutions to the automotive, electronics, printing and paper, and building and construction industries.
Featured Articles
This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.
Before you consider Beiersdorf Aktiengesellschaft, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Beiersdorf Aktiengesellschaft wasn't on the list.
While Beiersdorf Aktiengesellschaft currently has a Hold rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
Looking to profit from the electric vehicle mega-trend? Click the link to see our list of which EV stocks show the most long-term potential.
Get This Free Report
