By Stuart Condie

SYDNEY--Shares in Australia's Endeavour Group fell after the alcohol retailer's first-half profit guidance fell short of analysts' expectations due to its sales-focused discounting.

The stock dropped 4.4% in early trade on Tuesday before rallying to sit 2.5% lower at 3.715 Australian dollars, equivalent to US$2.49.

Endeavour flagged a first-half pre-tax underlying profit of between A$400 million and A$411 million. That compared with a consensus forecast of A$438.4 million, according to data compiled by Visible Alpha.

Sales at Endeavour's Dan Murphy's and BWS liquor stores were up 0.7% on a year earlier at A$5.40 billion. Chief Executive Jayne Hrdlicka said the business had deliberately focused its pricing strategy on growing top-line sales.

"We have focused on reinforcing customer confidence in the value we offer across all channels," she said.

However, Endeavour's retail sales growth remained underwhelming despite its recent improvement, Citi analyst Sam Teeger wrote in a note to clients.

Last year, Endeavour's retail sales were hit by industrial action by workers at some of the Woolworths-owned distribution centers it uses.

Write to Stuart Condie at stuart.condie@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 12, 2026 21:04 ET (02:04 GMT)

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