The fragrance and flavor manufacturer Symrise has managed to significantly boost its operating profit thanks to a cost-saving strategy. The company's earning power has reached its highest level in a decade, emphasized CEO Jean-Yves Parisot during a conference call on Wednesday. Parisot highlighted that the effect of efficiency improvements is permanent. Nevertheless, Symrise shares continued their recent downward trend, losing around one percent. The adjusted operating profit rose by nearly five percent to €1.08 billion. The operating profit margin improved by more than one percentage point to 21.9 percent. As a result, the dividend is set to increase for the 16th consecutive time to €1.25 per share. Last month, the company also announced a share buyback of up to €400 million. However, the 2025 balance sheet was impacted by several special factors. A write-down of €148 million on the terpene business, which is up for sale, as well as €150 million on the stake in Swedish company Swedencare, reduced unadjusted operating profit by nearly twelve percent to approximately €913 million. The depreciation of the dollar and several other currencies lowered group revenue by 1.4 percent to €4.93 billion. Excluding the currency effect, organic growth would have been 2.8 percent. This increase landed in the middle of the target range, which had been lowered in October due to weakening demand, from 2.3 to 3.3 percent. For 2026, Symrise is bracing for continued subdued growth. The company expects organic revenue growth between two and four percent and an adjusted operating profit margin between 21.5 and 22.5 percent. The midpoints of these forecasts are partly above and partly below market expectations, wrote analyst Chris Counihan of investment bank Jefferies. Given the forecasted organic revenue decline for the current quarter, business will need to pick up in the following months to meet the annual targets. The company reaffirmed its medium-term outlook. By 2028, revenues are expected to rise by five to seven percent annually. The operating profit margin will be between 21 and 23 percent. (Reporting by Patricia Weiß and Hakan Ersen, edited by Myria Mildenberger. For questions, please contact our editorial team at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and economy) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for companies and markets).)