Wines & SpiritsNarrow moat

LVMH (MC) — moat facet

Champagne holding, cognac falling: the only group smaller than in 2021.

Wines & Spirits is the only business group smaller than it was in 2021. It brought in €5,358 million of revenue in 2025 and €1,016 million of profit from recurring operations, a margin of about 19.0%.12

Wines & Spirits revenue by line (€m)€3,474mChampagne& wines 2022€3,180mChampagne& wines 2024€3,625mCognac & spirits 2022€2,683mCognac &spirits 2024LVMH 2024 Universal Registration Document
Cognac lost 26% of its revenue in two years; champagne 8%.

It holds Moët & Chandon, Dom Pérignon, Veuve Clicquot, Krug, Ruinart and Hennessy, among others.3 Part of the distribution runs through joint ventures with Diageo, in place since 1987, which carried 23% of champagne and cognac sales in 2024.4

Its best years were recent. Revenue rose from €4,835 million in 2016 to €7,099 million in 2022, with a margin of 30.4%.56 Then it fell three years running, 5% organically in 2025 alone, and profit fell from €2,155 million to €1,016 million.78

Cognac did most of the damage. Cognac and spirits revenue fell from €3,625 million in 2022 to €2,683 million in 2024, while champagne and wines slipped from €3,474 million to €3,180 million.9 Volumes fell in both: cognac from 94.3 million bottles to 80.8 million, champagne from 70.9 million to 61.7 million.1011 LVMH blames weaker local demand and customs-duty disputes in China and the United States for Hennessy in 2025, and says its champagne houses held 22% of the appellation's shipments.12

The United States was 34% of the group's 2024 revenue and Asia outside Japan 18%, down from 21% in 2023.13

The first half of 2026 was the first improvement. Revenue was €2,598 million, up 5% organically, and profit rose 11% to €582 million, which LVMH puts down to prestige cuvées, Hennessy's momentum in China since the Chinese New Year and cost cuts.1415

The verdict is that this group's moat is intact in champagne and exposed in cognac, whose largest markets are the two in a trade dispute. The figure to watch is cognac and spirits revenue: €2,683 million in 2024, and a further fall in 2026 would mean the first-half recovery was champagne alone.

Moat trajectory: Holding steady

Profit up 11% in H1 2026 after falling from €2,155M in 2022 to €1,016M in 2025.

The number that tests this moat
Reported
Wines & Spirits recurring profit, first half
€582M in H1 2026, up 11%

The first rise after three years of decline; a fall in cognac revenue in 2026 would show the recovery is champagne alone.

Source: LVMH first-half 2026 results release ↗
References
  1. ReportedIt brought in €5,358 million of revenue in 2025 and €1,016 million of profit from recurring operations, a margin of about 19.0%.
    LVMH 2025 annual results release - revenue by business group with organic change, profit from recurring operations by business group, and business-group commentary, 2024 and 2025 — FY2024-FY2025 · publ. January 2026 · source ↗
  2. Moat Explorer calcIt brought in €5,358 million of revenue in 2025 and €1,016 million of profit from recurring operations, a margin of about 19.0%.
    Moat Explorer calculation from LVMH's annual results releases 2017-2025, the 2023 and 2024 URDs and the H1 2026 release: operating margins, shares of group profit and revenue, compound growth rates — FY2016 to H1 2026 · publ. 2026-09-23 · source ↗
  3. ReportedIt holds Moët & Chandon, Dom Pérignon, Veuve Clicquot, Krug, Ruinart and Hennessy, among others.
    LVMH 2024 Universal Registration Document - business-group sections: revenue, profit, operating margin, revenue by region, type of revenue, store networks, Wines & Spirits revenue split and volumes, Diageo joint ventures, organic change by business group — FY2022-FY2024 · publ. March 2025 · source ↗
  4. ReportedPart of the distribution runs through joint ventures with Diageo, in place since 1987, which carried 23% of champagne and cognac sales in 2024.
    LVMH 2024 Universal Registration Document - business-group sections: revenue, profit, operating margin, revenue by region, type of revenue, store networks, Wines & Spirits revenue split and volumes, Diageo joint ventures, organic change by business group — FY2022-FY2024 · publ. March 2025 · source ↗
  5. ReportedRevenue rose from €4,835 million in 2016 to €7,099 million in 2022, with a margin of 30.4%.
    LVMH 2017 annual results release - revenue and profit from recurring operations by business group, 2016 and 2017 — FY2016-FY2017 · publ. January 2018 · source ↗
  6. ReportedRevenue rose from €4,835 million in 2016 to €7,099 million in 2022, with a margin of 30.4%.
    LVMH 2024 Universal Registration Document - business-group sections: revenue, profit, operating margin, revenue by region, type of revenue, store networks, Wines & Spirits revenue split and volumes, Diageo joint ventures, organic change by business group — FY2022-FY2024 · publ. March 2025 · source ↗
  7. ReportedThen it fell three years running, 5% organically in 2025 alone, and profit fell from €2,155 million to €1,016 million.
    LVMH 2024 Universal Registration Document - business-group sections: revenue, profit, operating margin, revenue by region, type of revenue, store networks, Wines & Spirits revenue split and volumes, Diageo joint ventures, organic change by business group — FY2022-FY2024 · publ. March 2025 · source ↗
  8. ReportedThen it fell three years running, 5% organically in 2025 alone, and profit fell from €2,155 million to €1,016 million.
    LVMH 2025 annual results release - revenue by business group with organic change, profit from recurring operations by business group, and business-group commentary, 2024 and 2025 — FY2024-FY2025 · publ. January 2026 · source ↗
  9. ReportedCognac and spirits revenue fell from €3,625 million in 2022 to €2,683 million in 2024, while champagne and wines slipped from €3,474 million to €3,180 million.
    LVMH 2024 Universal Registration Document - business-group sections: revenue, profit, operating margin, revenue by region, type of revenue, store networks, Wines & Spirits revenue split and volumes, Diageo joint ventures, organic change by business group — FY2022-FY2024 · publ. March 2025 · source ↗
  10. ReportedVolumes fell in both: cognac from 94.3 million bottles to 80.8 million, champagne from 70.9 million to 61.7 million.
    LVMH 2024 Universal Registration Document - business-group sections: revenue, profit, operating margin, revenue by region, type of revenue, store networks, Wines & Spirits revenue split and volumes, Diageo joint ventures, organic change by business group — FY2022-FY2024 · publ. March 2025 · source ↗
  11. Moat Explorer calcVolumes fell in both: cognac from 94.3 million bottles to 80.8 million, champagne from 70.9 million to 61.7 million.
    Moat Explorer calculation from LVMH's annual results releases 2017-2025, the 2023 and 2024 URDs and the H1 2026 release: operating margins, shares of group profit and revenue, compound growth rates — FY2016 to H1 2026 · publ. 2026-09-23 · source ↗
  12. ReportedLVMH blames weaker local demand and customs-duty disputes in China and the United States for Hennessy in 2025, and says its champagne houses held 22% of the appellation's shipments.
    LVMH 2025 annual results release - revenue by business group with organic change, profit from recurring operations by business group, and business-group commentary, 2024 and 2025 — FY2024-FY2025 · publ. January 2026 · source ↗
  13. ReportedThe United States was 34% of the group's 2024 revenue and Asia outside Japan 18%, down from 21% in 2023.
    LVMH 2024 Universal Registration Document - business-group sections: revenue, profit, operating margin, revenue by region, type of revenue, store networks, Wines & Spirits revenue split and volumes, Diageo joint ventures, organic change by business group — FY2022-FY2024 · publ. March 2025 · source ↗
  14. ReportedRevenue was €2,598 million, up 5% organically, and profit rose 11% to €582 million, which LVMH puts down to prestige cuvées, Hennessy's momentum in China since the Chinese New Year and cost cuts.
    LVMH first-half 2026 results release - revenue by business group with organic change for the half and the second quarter, profit from recurring operations by business group, and business-group commentary — H1 2026 · publ. 27 July 2026 · source ↗
  15. Moat Explorer calcRevenue was €2,598 million, up 5% organically, and profit rose 11% to €582 million, which LVMH puts down to prestige cuvées, Hennessy's momentum in China since the Chinese New Year and cost cuts.
    Moat Explorer calculation from LVMH's annual results releases 2017-2025, the 2023 and 2024 URDs and the H1 2026 release: operating margins, shares of group profit and revenue, compound growth rates — FY2016 to H1 2026 · publ. 2026-09-23 · source ↗
Sources
Generated September 23, 2026