By Elisa Anzolin

Campari Shares See Significant Drop

MILAN (Reuters) – Shares in Campari (LON:0ROY) were on track for their largest single-day decline in over four years on Wednesday, after the Italian spirits group missed analysts' expectations for third-quarter earnings significantly.

Campari shares fell 15% by 1000 GMT, increasing the total decline to approximately 35% since the start of the year.

Market Challenges

Spirits manufacturers are facing lackluster demand following a sales boom in the post-pandemic years. "I think probably we have maybe underestimated the level of disruption at the consumer confidence level," remarked Paolo Marchesini, Campari's CFO and interim co-CEO, during a conference call with analysts late Tuesday.

Net sales for Campari, known for its popular Aperol aperitif, decreased by 1.4% to 753 million euros ($816 million) in the third quarter, falling short of the expected rise to 832 million as per a Visible Alpha consensus.

Barclays noted, "With top-line recovery unclear and a new CEO not yet at the helm, we struggle to identify a clear positive catalyst pathway."

Leadership Changes

Campari anticipates concluding the search for a new CEO by the first half of next year. Former CEO Matteo Fantacchiotti resigned abruptly in September after just five months, citing personal reasons.

Regional Sales Impact

Sales in the Americas were influenced by a subdued market environment and the repercussions of July's hurricane in Jamaica, which led to supply shortages in the rum portfolio. In Europe, revenues suffered due to poor weather in September and lower-than-expected consumption.

Adjusted operating profit fell 18.2% in the third quarter, missing analyst consensus expectations.

> ($1 = 0.9224 euros)