Shares in Brunello Cucinelli (BIT:BC) climbed more than 4% on Friday after the Italian luxury group reported first-quarter sales that exceeded expectations, driven by robust demand in the Americas and Asia, which helped offset weaker wholesale performance in Europe.
Revenue for the quarter reached €369 million, marking a 14% increase at constant exchange rates (CER), significantly ahead of the Visible Alpha consensus forecast of around 10.6% growth.
Retail performance stood out, with sales surging 20.1% in CER terms, well above expectations of approximately 14.7%, and building on a 10% growth base from the same period last year. Retail sales expanded at a double-digit rate across all regions.
Geographically, the Americas delivered the strongest growth at 20.3% CER, outperforming expectations of 14.3%, while Asia recorded a 17.8% increase versus a forecast of 12.4%.
Europe was comparatively weaker, posting 4.4% growth in CER, slightly below the 5.9% consensus estimate. This was mainly due to softer wholesale activity, as the company continues to limit orders to avoid excess inventory and protect pricing from discounting.
The group reaffirmed its full-year outlook, maintaining guidance for 10% growth in both 2026 and 2027.
Analysts at Morgan Stanley, who rate the stock Overweight with a €95 price target, said the results support their positive stance.
“We think the company remains one of the structurally strongest growth stories in luxury,” they wrote.
“Our recent channel checks across European retailers and feedback from China have been very positive on the brand and continue to point to strong momentum at Brunello Cucinelli and expectations for a strong year ahead, with a runway for growth,” the analysts noted.
Regarding recent trading, the company indicated that trends in early April were broadly in line with March. While the Middle East saw a decline in foot traffic—down 50% in March due to regional tensions—this was offset by stronger performance in other markets. The region still made a positive contribution to overall first-quarter growth, supported by solid results in January and February.
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