Campari posts a loss after nine-month results; performance in North America is a cause for concern

 (Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - Campari is down sharply on the Milan Stock Exchange, following the release of its first-nine-month revenue figures.

Davide Campari, on Wednesday 28 October, after the markets had closed, announced that it had recorded sales of €2.289 billion, representing an overall increase of 0.4 per cent and organic growth of 2.9 per cent (+3.4 per cent in the third quarter) in the first nine months of 2026. The company also highlighted its outperformance relative to the sector “mainly thanks to aperitifs and tequila”. The outlook for 2026 remains unchanged, with net sales expected to grow organically by around +3 per cent, with stronger growth in Europe and more modest growth in North America.

In particular, in the United States, the group’s managers are forecasting a marginal decline in net sales for the year. In terms of the adjusted EBIT margin on sales, the group confirms its expectation of organic margin growth, including an impact of 20 million resulting from US tariffs and the confirmed positive trend in the underlying gross margin. It was also announced that a total of 15 million in refunds relating to the 2025 US tariffs has been received.

Deutsche Bank and Banca Akros have confirmed their ‘buy’ recommendation on the shares, despite the negative market reaction triggered by concerns over weak performance in North America. In particular, Banca Akros (’Buy’ rating with a target price of €7.50) highlighted that Campari shares are trading at a discount to historical multiples, trading at a price-to-adjusted-expected-earnings ratio for 2027 of 11.8 times, well below the five-year average of around 13.3 times. Deutsche Bank (‘Buy’ with a target price of €7.30) emphasised that third-quarter organic sales growth (+3.4 per cent) was perfectly in line with the consensus, whilst reported revenues were even higher than expected. The German bank’s analysts believe that further acceleration in Europe and emerging markets is offsetting the weakness in the North American market.

Equita, on the other hand, is more critical and therefore recommends a ‘Hold’ on the shares, whilst also taking into account the stock’s strong performance: it has soared by 20 per cent since the start of the year and is up 12 per cent over the last three months. The indicated price target is 7.1 euros, which is higher than current prices.