Cincinnati, Ohio, January 22, 2026, 08:32 EST
- Procter & Gamble posted quarterly revenue just below Wall Street estimates as volumes slipped in several core categories.
- The company trimmed its full-year net EPS growth outlook on higher restructuring charges, while holding its sales and core EPS targets.
- Management pointed to pressure on lower-income shoppers, with beauty still a bright spot.
Procter & Gamble on Thursday reported fiscal second-quarter revenue that came in just under Wall Street estimates and lowered its forecast for full-year net earnings-per-share growth, citing higher restructuring charges.
The world’s biggest consumer goods company by market value is often treated as a read-through on everyday demand, because it sells staples like Tide detergent and Charmin toilet paper. The latest quarter suggests some shoppers are still pulling back, even on basics.
That matters now because the push-and-pull between price rises and volumes is getting harder for consumer staples groups. P&G, Unilever and Nestle all compete for the same cautious shopper, and the first cracks tend to show up in the numbers.
For the three months ended Dec. 31, P&G posted net sales of $22.21 billion, compared with analysts’ estimate of $22.28 billion, according to LSEG data. Excluding one-off items, it earned $1.88 per share, topping estimates of $1.86, even as overall volumes fell 1% and prices rose 1%.
Weak spending in core U.S. categories such as laundry detergent and toilet paper outweighed better demand for beauty products, where volumes rose 3%. Beauty has been an outlier for P&G over the past year, helped by higher-end “self-care” buys.
P&G’s gross margin — a measure of profit on sales after production costs — has now fallen for five straight quarters, Reuters reported, pressured in part by tariffs and spending on different pack sizes aimed at value-seeking consumers.
The squeeze showed up most clearly among lower-income households, which have cut back even on essentials amid high prices and a softer job market. Reuters also pointed to an added drag from a U.S. government shutdown that delayed food assistance payments in October and November.
P&G held its fiscal-year sales outlook, projecting all-in sales growth of 1% to 5% and organic sales growth — excluding currency swings and big portfolio moves — ranging from flat to up 4%. It kept its core EPS growth target unchanged, but cut its diluted net EPS growth outlook to 1% to 6% from 3% to 9%, reflecting higher restructuring charges, the company said.
CEO Shailesh Jejurikar said the company expects a stronger back half. “We have confidence in our plans to deliver stronger results in the second-half of the fiscal year,” he said.
P&G also leaned on cash returns to shareholders. It reported $5.0 billion in operating cash flow and said it returned $4.8 billion to shareowners through dividends and buybacks during the quarter, alongside what it calls “adjusted free cash flow productivity,” its cash-after-investment measure.
Still, the bet on a second-half pickup is not a free one. If volumes keep sliding, or if tariffs and stepped-up promotions eat into margins, the earnings picture could turn quickly, especially with restructuring costs already climbing.
P&G has been exiting underperforming businesses as it reshapes its portfolio; Reuters cited its latest exit as laundry bars in India and the Philippines. The company plans to cut about 7,000 non-manufacturing roles over two years.
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