Coty’s Sue Nabi Says Coty Results ‘Exceeded Expectations’

New Coty Inc. chief executive officer Sue Nabi said the company is emerging “stronger” this quarter — and it looks like Wall Street agrees with her.
Nabi noted that Coty’s results for the quarter ended Sept. 30 exceeded the company’s own expectations. Shares spiked more than 22 percent after the results were released, closing at $4.08. Citi analyst Wendy Nicholson called the results “better than we expected” in a note.
“A stronger Coty has emerged this past quarter,” Nabi told WWD in an early morning video interview Friday. She credited market trends but also improvements in the company’s mass and prestige businesses for the results, and outlined her vision for Coty, which has been ailing since the company’s takeover of the P&G specialty beauty portfolio in 2016.
Nabi said Coty is on track to deliver on financial targets, including leverage reduction — its roughly $8 billion in debt is expected to be halved once the divestment of Wella is complete, expected later this year, she said. KKR is taking the majority stake in several of Coty’s professional businesses, including Wella, and Coty will remain a 40 percent owner. The value of that position is about $1.3 billion, Nabi said.
“At the same time, we

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