Heineken Raises Guidance Despite China Loss and First-Half Miss
Heineken, the world's second-largest brewer, has raised its full-year profit guidance despite reporting a 12.5% rise in half-year operating profit, which fell short of analysts' forecast of 13.2%. The company also took an impairment charge of €874 million ($949 million) due to a decline in the value of its stake in China Resources Beer Holdings Co. This was attributed to concerns about consumer demand in China, which negatively impacted the share price.
Despite these setbacks, Heineken has revised its full-year profit expectations, now projecting organic operating profit growth of between 4% and 8% in 2024. This adjustment comes after a previous guidance range of low to high single-digit growth. The updated forecast remains below the 8.2% growth anticipated by analysts. CEO Dolf van den Brink noted that the company plans to invest further in key markets and brands to foster volume and revenue growth.
