LVMH beats earnings expectations as China recovery mounts

Luxury conglomerate LVMH reported better-than-expected earnings after the bell on Tuesday and a second quarter of organic revenue growth, as the sector’s recovering business in China starts to show up in balance sheets.

Organic revenue grew by 1% in the fourth quarter, flat from the same period a year earlier. Over the full year, revenue declined 1%.

The company reported fourth-quarter revenue of 22.7 billion euros, beating LSEG estimates of 22.2 billion euros. For the full year, revenue came to 80.8 billion euros.

Excluding Japan, Asia saw a noticeable improvement in trends compared to 2024, with a return to growth in the second half of the year, the company said.

Despite the improvement, CEO Bernard Arnault said “2026 won’t be simple,” warning of an “unforseeable” and “disrupted” economic context.

LVMH is the parent company of a range of 75 different luxury brands. Its fashion and leather goods division, which brings in the bulk of its profits and includes fashion brands like Louis Vuitton, Dior and Fendi, saw organic sales decline 5% over the full year, a larger decline than the 1% decline it logged a year earlier.

In October, LVMH shares surged 12% the day after it reported that organic growth re-entered positive territory in the third quarter. The results, alongside those of peers, ignited investors’ optimism that the gloom around luxury over the past two years, as Chinese consumers spent less, was beginning to turn around.