Sweden's Essity Q1 sales slightly beat estimates, adjusted EBITA margin rises

Essity AB (publ)

23/04/2026 06:22

Overview

Sweden hygiene and health products maker's Q1 sales slightly beat analyst expectations

Adjusted EBITA for Q1 declined 2% yr/yr; EBITA margin excl. IAC improved

Company completed Edgewell feminine care acquisition and announced SEK 3 bln share buyback

Outlook

Essity says it is well equipped to navigate a turbulent external environment

Company aims to accelerate growth and profitability following North American acquisition

Essity to present initiatives toward financial targets at May 7 Capital Markets Day

Result Drivers

VOLUME GROWTH - Co said higher volumes drove organic sales growth, with Personal Care and Professional Hygiene performing strongly

MARGIN IMPROVEMENT - Higher volumes, lower costs of goods sold and price discipline lifted gross margin, per CEO

ACQUISITION IMPACT - Edgewell feminine care acquisition in North America increased group net sales and nearly doubled Personal Care presence in region

Company press release: ID:nWkr9XHlyx

Key Details

Metric
Beat/Miss
Actual
Consensus Estimate
Q1 Sales
Slight Beat*
SEK 33.18 bln
SEK 33.05 bln (12 Analysts)
Q1 EPS
SEK 4.23
Q1 Net Income
SEK 2.90 bln
Q1 Adjusted EBITA
SEK 4.60 bln
Q1 EBITA
SEK 4.45 bln


*Applies to a deviation of less than 1%; not applicable for per-share numbers.

Analyst Coverage

The current average analyst rating on the shares is "hold" and the breakdown of recommendations is 7 "strong buy" or "buy", 6 "hold" and 3 "sell" or "strong sell"

The average consensus recommendation for the personal products peer group is "buy."

Wall Street's median 12-month price target for Essity AB (publ) is SEK270.00, about 10.2% above its April 22 closing price of SEK244.90

The stock recently traded at 13 times the next 12-month earnings vs. a P/E of 13 three months ago

For questions concerning the data in this report, contact Estimates.Support@lseg.com. For any other questions or feedback, contact reuters.support@thomsonreuters.com.

(This story was created using Reuters automation and AI based on LSEG and company data. It was checked and edited by a Reuters journalist prior to publication.)