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Diageo has cut its dividend and new chief executive Sir Dave Lewis pledged to “act more decisively” to turn around the struggling drinks giant as it reported sliding sales and profits.
Lewis on Wednesday said the FTSE 100 company’s board had “taken the difficult decision to reduce the dividend to a more appropriate level”.
He added the changes would create “financial flexibility” for Diageo “to act more decisively to enhance its competitiveness” and broaden its portfolio.
Diageo cut its dividend from 103.5 cents a share for its 2025 financial year to a minimum of 50 cents a year going forward.
It came as the group reported a 4 per cent fall in net sales to $10.5bn for the final six months of 2025, amid weakness in the US and China. It said tariffs were partly responsible for a 1.2 per cent decline in operating profit, which fell to $3.1bn.
Lewis, whose reputation for cost-cutting earned him the nickname “Drastic Dave”, has taken over Diageo after a tumultuous period at the maker of Guinness, Johnnie Walker and Captain Morgan.
When he started, Lewis became Diageo’s third chief executive in less than three years. Debra Crew departed last summer after the board failed to quash speculation that her chief financial officer, Nik Jhangiani, was angling for her job at the helm of the world’s biggest spirits maker.
This is a developing story