Haleon (NYSE:HLN) executives fielded questions from analysts following the company’s fiscal year 2025 results, focusing on the outlook for organic sales growth, the impact of a soft cold and flu season, steps being taken to improve performance in the U.S., and how productivity gains are funding investment behind brands and innovation.
2026 outlook: 3%–5% organic sales growth, with a softer start to the year
CEO Brian McNamara addressed questions about the company’s 2026 organic sales growth guidance of 3%–5%, which implies an acceleration from the 3% organic growth Haleon delivered in 2025. McNamara said 2025 growth was below expectations set earlier in the year, largely due to the cold and flu season and a slowdown in the U.S. market. He said the U.S. declined about 0.5% in 2025, while APAC and EMEA/LatAm grew mid-single digits.
On phasing, McNamara said Haleon expects the first quarter cold and flu season to be below the prior year, not only in the U.S. but also outside the U.S.
Medium-term ambition reiterated despite near-term uncertainty
McNamara reiterated Haleon’s medium-term ambition for 4%–6% organic sales growth. He acknowledged that near-term guidance implies performance may remain below that range in the near term, framing it as a reflection of continued market uncertainty. Based on what the company knows at present, he said Haleon would expect to be in the middle of the medium-term range over time.
He cited continued category attractiveness and opportunities tied to closing “the incident treatment gap,” ongoing premiumization, and expanding access for lower-income consumers. McNamara also expressed confidence in emerging markets, saying the company feels good about China and expects an acceleration in India, adding that India is “performing extremely well.”
Operating model changes aimed at faster execution and savings to reinvest
McNamara outlined how a new reorganization is intended to unlock growth and agility. Haleon created a new chief growth officer role combining category structure, marketing capabilities, insights and analytics, strategy, and a new commercial excellence function. The company is also moving from three regions to six operating units, with Latin America, India, and Middle East/Africa gaining direct representation on the leadership team.
McNamara said the centrally created commercial execution function is deploying AI-driven tools for net revenue management and pricing actions. He also said the reorganization will remove a layer of management, creating a flatter structure tied to previously disclosed gross savings of GBP 175 million to GBP 200 million, which he said provides flexibility to invest in growth and innovation.
U.S. focus: new leadership, shelf resets, and channel shifts
Management repeatedly returned to actions being taken in North America. McNamara said Haleon made a key leadership change in the U.S. in May and has since created category general manager roles reporting to the U.S. president while remaining connected to global category heads. He also cited changes in net revenue management tools, along with updates to sales force leadership and structure.
McNamara said a number of major customers will conduct shelving resets in the second quarter, and Haleon expects distribution and shelf-placement improvements across oral health, vitamins/minerals/supplements (VMS), and pain relief. He declined to quantify the expected benefit, but said the shelf gains are one reason for confidence in improving performance as 2026 progresses.
On the U.S. pharmacy channel, McNamara said Haleon continues to see ongoing channel shifts away from drug retailers and toward e-commerce, including Walmart.com and Amazon. He said 18 brands account for 90% of Haleon’s Amazon business, and 16 of those 18 brands have higher share online than offline, which he described as an advantage as the shift continues. He also said the company saw lower inventory levels at key retailers in 2025 as those retailers managed their own challenges, and that Haleon believes it is now positioned appropriately.
Brand performance: oral health strength, emerging markets momentum, and category-specific commentary
Executives highlighted oral health as a standout. McNamara said Sensodyne’s clinical range is resonating with consumers, citing products such as Clinical White, Clinical Repair, and Clinical Enamel Strength. He also pointed to parodontax growth in the “mid-teens” and said a launch in China is in an early distribution ramp, but progress has been encouraging. He described Haleon’s oral health model as tied to dental recommendations, innovation, and competing on therapeutics.
CFO Dawn Allen said emerging markets remain a major opportunity and described strong performance in Asia-Pacific, where she said 80% of growth came from volume/mix driven by penetration gains and expanded reach to lower-income consumers. In India, Allen said Haleon delivered double-digit growth for the year and accelerated in the fourth quarter, supported by macro changes around GST and company activations, including Sensodyne’s 20-INR pack and sales force investments to expand rural reach. In China, she said the company delivered mid-single digit growth for the year, with e-commerce representing about 40% of the China business; she noted Douyin growth of more than 100% and said online-to-offline grew double digits.
Allen said Latin America saw a slowdown in the fourth quarter amid a more challenging macro backdrop affecting both consumers and retailers, while Middle East/Africa continued to perform well. She also said Central Europe slowed in the fourth quarter due to the soft cold and flu season.
On digestive health, McNamara said more than 80% of the business is concentrated in the U.S., India, and Brazil. He said Eno is performing well in India and Brazil, while in the U.S. Haleon has seen pressure on Nexium due to private label competition. He also described an opportunity to support consumers using GLP-1 drugs, citing digestive side effects addressed by brands such as TUMS and Benefiber, and noting dry mouth solutions like Biotene as well as a Centrum variant aimed at this consumer need.
In pain relief, McNamara highlighted Voltaren’s position as the number one topical analgesic globally and discussed a patch business, including a 24-hour patch rollout in several markets. He said Panadol has performed well in Asia, and he emphasized the importance of improving Advil consistency in the U.S., noting the brand gained share in the fourth quarter.
On profitability and investment, management pointed to productivity gains and reinvestment behind growth. McNamara said Haleon delivered 220 basis points of gross margin improvement in 2025. Allen said supply chain productivity delivered better than expected and that the company has built 50–80 basis points of gross margin improvement into guidance going forward. She also provided examples of complexity reduction and operational efficiency initiatives, including reducing Aquafresh single-language packs in Europe from 44 to 18 multi-language packs and reducing formulations by 30% at the Levice factory.
Allen said Haleon increased A&P by 7.5% and R&D by 7.7% in 2025, and that the company is focused on maintaining investment for sustainable growth rather than cutting spend in a tougher market. She said half of the A&P increase went to oral health and the other half to emerging markets, while also highlighting investment behind Haleon Health Partner and field force engagement. She said the company improved its working/non-working media split, increased working media 12%, improved ROI by mid-single digits, expanded measurement coverage to about three-quarters of the business, and allocated 60% of working media to digital.
About Haleon (NYSE:HLN)
Haleon plc (NYSE:HLN) is a global consumer healthcare company formed through the separation of a large pharmaceutical group’s consumer health business in 2022. Headquartered in the United Kingdom, Haleon develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of over‑the‑counter medicines, oral health products, vitamins, minerals and supplements, and other consumer health goods designed for daily self‑care and symptom relief.
The company’s product mix spans categories such as oral care (toothpastes and sensitivity treatments), pain relief and analgesics, respiratory remedies, digestive health products, topical treatments and nutritional supplements.
