Trading Update on COVID-19, Outlook 2020 Withdrawn and Suspension of Share Buyback Program

Wednesday, April 1 2020 | 15 h 59 min | Financial News, News, Press Release

EssilorLuxottica announces that in light of the evolving COVID-19 pandemic, the Company’s outlook for 2020 published on March 6, 2020 is no longer valid.

In January and February, the company delivered solid growth, in line with its full year targets. Business conditions began deteriorating in March as the virus shifted from impacting predominantly China to entire regions of Europe and North America. During the second quarter, the Company expects revenue to further decelerate with a material impact on profitability. At present, the Company has insufficient visibility to provide an assessment of the full scope of COVID-19 impact, as the situation remains volatile.

Essilor has temporarily closed all its industrial sites in France. Production continuity is ensured thanks to the company’s worldwide network of interconnected plants and laboratories. This includes all production facilities in China, which are now back to full speed and have spare capacity. E-commerce activities are growing with no back orders.

Luxottica’s manufacturing plants have temporarily suspended their activity in Italy and other smaller locations, while they are back to normal levels in China. Stores in Europe and North America are complying with the temporary lockdown measures that local governments are putting in place, while Company’s e-commerce platforms continue to operate globally.

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, and with the likelihood of prolonged uncertainty, EssilorLuxottica has decided to stop the implementation of its share buyback program announced on March 17, 2020.

Since March 17, 2020, 1.55 million shares for an average price of Euro 102.54 have been repurchased.

For the full trading update press release, click HERE.

Click HERE for the press release on the suspension of the share buyback program.