Beiersdorf hikes profit guidance on strong consumer products

German Beiersdorf, the maker of Nivea cream and Tesa adhesives, raised its guidance for 2016 earnings on Thursday on strong third-quarter sales at its consumer business, which roared back after a disappointing first half of the year.

Beiersdorf said it now expected its margin on earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) to significantly exceed the year-earlier figure, without providing further detail.

It had previously said it expected its EBIT margin to widen slightly from the 14.4 percent it reported in 2015.

Beiersdorf's consumer business, which includes cosmetics brands Nivea, Eucerin and La Prairie, will continue to support earnings margins, while adhesives business Tesa, which suffers from a slump in demand from Asia, will be a drag, the company said.

Organic sales across all business segments rose by 2.9 percent to 5.03 billion euros ($5.60 billion) in the first nine months, the company said.