Nestle's Sales Slow; Company Forecasts Subdued Growth in 2017

Brian Blackstone

VEVEY, Switzerland--Nestle SA (NESN.EB) reported on Thursday a further slowdown in a key sales metric and said growth would remain subdued in 2017, underscoring the challenges facing consumer-goods companies amid sluggish growth in key markets.

The Swiss consumer giant, owner of Nesquik flavored drinks, Puppy Chow pet food and Stouffer's frozen dinners, said sales were CHF89.5 billion (about $89 billion) last year, slightly below analyst expectations. Net profit was CHF8.5 billion, down from CHF9.1 billion in 2015.

Organic sales--which strip out the effects of currency fluctuations, acquisitions and divestments--grew just 3.2%, down from 4.2% in 2015 and marking the fourth straight year that Nestle has missed its 5%-6% growth objective. It said Thursday that organic growth should come in between 2% and 4% this year.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 16, 2017 01:53 ET (06:53 GMT)

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