Photo: Nu Skin’s corporate headquarters in Provo, Utah.
Despite weak first-quarter earnings, Nu Skin Enterprises Inc. is confident that its expanding China business and forthcoming product launches will pay off in the second half of 2015.
Quarterly revenue landed in the middle of the company’s guidance at $543.3 million, a 20 percent drop from $671.1 million a year ago. Excluding one-time costs, earnings were 72 cents a share. Analysts had estimated that earnings would reach 73 cents a share on revenue of $546.87 million.
Nu Skin’s active associate numbers continued to decline in all regions except South Asia/Pacific, where active associates increased 4.3 percent from the prior-year period. Greater China recorded the sharpest decline, down 23 percent from the first three quarters of 2014.
In its earnings call, Nu Skin disclosed that the Securities and Exchange Commission has opened a non-public investigation into a donation the company made in China in 2013. Executives said Nu Skin is cooperating with the investigation, but provided no further details.
President and CEO Truman Hunt said Nu Skin is working to expand its footprint in China despite regulatory challenges, including a review early last year that prompted Nu Skin to halt recruiting and resulted in fines for the company. Hunt noted Chinese officials have granted Nu Skin approval to operate its direct selling business in two new cities in Guangdong province.
The anti-aging brand is counting on new ageLOC offerings to drive constant-currency revenue growth in 2015. “Enthusiasm is building for our upcoming product launches that include ageLOC Youth, our most advanced anti-aging supplement, as well as ageLOC Me, an innovative anti-aging skincare system that enables consumers to personalize a daily regimen based on individual preferences and skincare needs,” said Hunt.
In July, the company will also roll out its Epoch essential oils line across the U.S. and Canada, where Nu Skin introduced the products in April through a limited offering. It will also introduce a sister line, ageLOC Essentials, to its Chinese customers.
Nu Skin reduced its revenue guidance for the full year by about 2 percent and said it expects earnings between $3.65 and $3.75 a share, compared to the $3.94 consensus from analysts.
