By Joshua Kirby
Shares in Davide Campari-Milano gained ground after the distiller said it would keep investing to snare sales growth for its liquor brands, offering hope of fresh impetus after a pickup in pace at the end of last year.
The Italian group behind the Aperol aperitif, Courvoisier cognac and Wild Turkey bourbon booked 4.7% organic growth in its top line in the last quarter of 2025, notching up a total 770.4 million euros ($896.40 million) in sales for the period. That came in above expectations for sales of 759.3 million euros, according to a poll of analysts by FactSet.
For the year, Campari made sales of 3.05 billion euros, up 2.4% organically from a year earlier.
Investment in promotional spending looks to have paid off for Campari, RBC Capital Markets' Wassachon Udomsilpa and James Edwardes Jones wrote in a note to clients.
"This should continue into this year," they said.
Campari Chief Executive Officer Simon Hunt said the group would keep up the pace of investment in 2026, including an increase in advertising and promotion, or A&P, spending to a level equivalent to nearly 18% of sales.
That investment will be focused on the U.S., where the group sees space for Aperol, its core product, to take market share.
"Half of America has never heard of [Aperol,]" Hunt said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal following the update. "So we've significantly increased A&P in the U.S."
Milan-listed shares in the company gained 5.4% in morning trading to 6.32 euros. Still, like many of its European peers, shares remain down from the start of the decade, reflecting the many challenges the spirits sector has faced in recent years, from cost inflation to a chillier consumer backdrop, as well as fading interest in drinking among some consumers.
For 2026, Campari is aiming to book a similar pace of organic sales growth and increased profitability. The group's adjusted operating margin rose to 20.9% in 2025, from 19.7% a year earlier.
Campari has shown "superior growth, qualitative margin and robust management of cash," analysts at JPMorgan wrote in a note. Still, the company could later in the year face a challenge from London-based rival Diageo, owner of Smirnoff vodka and Johnnie Walker whisky. Many analysts expect Diageo to lower prices in a bid for volume growth in the key U.S. market.
"Campari might be facing heightened competition," JPM said. "[That is] a volatility in the market that doesn't seem to be encompassed in the current guidance."
Write to Joshua Kirby at joshua.kirby@wsj.com; @joshualeokirby
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 05, 2026 04:00 ET (09:00 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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