LVMH shares fall as margins disappointment takes shine off Q4 figures

PARIS (Reuters) - LVMH shares, which had hit a record high earlier this month, fell on Friday as some analysts expressed an element of disappointment over the company's margins, which took some of the shine off its fourth-quarter figures.

LVMH reported late on Thursday that its sales rose 9% in the fourth quarter as shoppers in Europe and the United States splurged over the crucial holiday season, helping partly to offset COVID disruptions in China.

However, some analysts said one weak spot was its flat margins.

"The slight wrinkle is on the margin, where the group delivered a flat operating margin year-on-year (versus consensus of +90 bps) - largely a reflection of maintaining/raising H2 marketing spend despite disrupted revenue growth," wrote Credit Suisse analysts.

(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Silvia Aloisi and Benoit Van Overstraeten)