At Anora’s general meeting, which I attended, the issue arose: why doesn’t the management buy the company’s shares, and is there a reason behind it, implying that even the management doesn’t believe in the company’s ability to make a profit. I no longer remember the exact answer, but to my recollection, the lawyer leading the general meeting stated that no one can be forced to buy shares. On the other hand, the new CEO hasn’t been at the helm for long, so hardly anyone could expect them to acquire shares as their first task. However, it might be justified that a portion of the remuneration paid to board members be paid in company shares 
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Anora has a reward program, so those shares might eventually come from there.
The lawyer’s answer certainly sounds like a lawyer’s answer, so it’s of no use.
Insiders sometimes have legal obstacles to trading that others may not know about (insider information). But if there are no restrictions, management should show commitment and faith in the company with even a small number of shares. It’s quite obvious that a person is significantly more interested in, for example, the share price if they have their own money at stake.
In Anora’s case, the CFO has been with the company for over a year and has 0 shares.
The CEO has been with Altia since 2014 and has shares worth 1.5 weeks’ salary.
Tietoevry’s new CEO bought over 400,000 euros worth of shares “as his first task” when he was appointed CEO:
Solteq’s CEO Aktan has been buying shares throughout his entire tenure as CEO:
Rapala is a bit of a different fish, as the CEO already owns the company with his family, but even there, money was put into shares right at the beginning of the CEO’s term, and the old CEO also bought shares:
Upon joining Kamux, CEO Pajuharju has invested his own money in shares from the start:
Suominen’s new CEO immediately started buying shares:
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So how has each CEO accumulated wealth, monthly salaries probably aren’t something many bother to return to the company. Options are likely the most natural way.. In itself, this new CEO seems like an excellent choice at first glance, Anora or Lindex, which one is ultimately better, time will tell 
Kirsi Puntila, the new CEO of Anora Group, is confident she can drive the company towards its ambitious goals with its strong Nordic brands.
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As a background, I’ll quote @Rauli_Juva from his latest comprehensive report on this point: “Currently, the weakly profitable Wine segment has approximately EUR 100 million in goodwill, where we see a risk of a write-down if the profitability level remains permanently low. If this were fully written down, it would be about 20% of equity, and the solvency ratio would still be around 30%. Thus, we do not see even a large write-down causing significant problems for the balance sheet. For a brand company, intangible assets in themselves are, in our opinion, justified.”
Then to Kauppalehti analyst Ari Rajala’s listings, behind a paywall, but Anora is included in the 11 companies mentioned in the title; to “qualify” for that category, these conditions are met: “there is risk and great destruction”. : Peräti 11 pörssiyhtiössä potentiaalinen tuho olisi suuri – Varo liikearvon alaskirjausriskiä | Kauppalehti
Quote: “Traditionally, according to Rajala, the write-down risk has been considered high when the share of goodwill in the balance sheet exceeds five percent, the market value falls below net assets, i.e., the P/B ratio remains below one, and profitability is unsatisfactory.”
Since people are interested, the other 10 companies are Solteq, Panostaja, Sitowise, Eezy, Solwers, Glaston, Vincit, Loihde, Rapala, and Wulff.
Anora has goodwill of 78.5% of its equity, a P/B of 0.58, and a return on equity of 4.1%.
Personally, I’m not overly concerned about this write-down risk or rather its effects; even though Anora isn’t the brightest star in Hesuli (except for its products, editor’s note), its business is relatively stable. What are others’ thoughts!?
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A relatively expected efficiency improvement announcement from Anora (considering the subdued earnings level and CEO change), but a surprisingly large amount of personnel costs are intended to be cut, i.e., 7 MEUR, when the company’s adjusted operating profit (EBITDA) is at the 70 MEUR level. These will impact next year.
I noticed on LinkedIn that Anora’s board had met yesterday, so it seems the company still has faith in this
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Good that Anora is finally being trimmed. There must have been a lot of unnecessary staff working there since the Altia-Arcus merger and acquisitions, so hopefully the company will now manage to achieve at least a somewhat decent profit level. This has certainly taken an unforgivably long time. An additional 7M in operating profit would be a significant bomb given the current dismal profit level.
“Anora employs a total of about 1,200 people. The company was formed in 2021 by merging Altia, the alcohol company spun off from Alko, and Norway’s Arcus.”
Some background figures I dug up: Altia employed about 700 people in 2018, and at the time of the merger in 2021, it was announced that the company employed about 1,100 people. Globus Wine employed 139 at the time of acquisition. In addition, small parts of the company have been sold along the way. Apparently, no one has been laid off, but employees from three companies have all been left in the company - doing what?
Surely, at least 20%-30% of the 1200 employees could be laid off without critically affecting operations, by eliminating old redundancies and abolishing separate middle management and structures. The problem is likely the state’s position as a significant owner and weak owners, whom Anora’s management treats as cash cows.
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Here are Orkla’s largest owners. The largest is the same, so is that also a reason not to own Orkla?
There has been restructuring at least in 2023.
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Anora’s headcount has actually continued to grow. At the end of Q2, there were 1264 people. That’s eight fewer than a year earlier. Since staff have inevitably departed due to retirement or, for example, changing jobs, on average, a new employee has been hired for each one, and that’s not even quite enough.
However, without taking a stance on the productivity of any single employee, I doubt that all salary cost savings would go directly to the bottom line.
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Here are Rauli Juva’s comments on Anora’s efficiency measures announced yesterday.
Anora announced yesterday that it is initiating measures to improve efficiency, aiming for savings of EUR 7 million starting next year. The measures were expected, as CEO Puntila, who started in March, clearly referred to these measures already in connection with the Q2 report. However, their scale is significant, with the company’s adjusted operating profit (EBITDA) being around EUR 70 million. The savings support our expectations of improved results next year, and we do not see a need for forecast changes.
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Alko released its September sales figures today, which showed a 5-6% decrease for wines and spirits. The figure itself doesn’t seem significant, but the comparison period was very weak (almost -20%), and it was precisely a weak September that caused Anora’s guidance to be lowered last year. Thus, a continuing downward trend compared to that is a weak development. Finland, of course, does not solely determine Anora’s development. For the full year, Alko’s volumes are down by about 10%, and the decline has only slightly softened in Q3, even though the impact of 8% of wines shifting to grocery stores ended in June.
September figures have also been received from Norway, which were roughly at the previous year’s level for both September and the entire Q3. For the full year, volumes in Norway are still down 3%.
Anora has estimated its main markets (Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark) to be “roughly at the same level” for the full year vs. 2024. In other markets, the trend is more stable, but Finland is expected to show a clear negative. Most likely, the overall market development will remain negative, but perhaps that “roughly” same level can be reached.
The company has guided for an adjusted EBITDA of 70-75 MEUR for this year, but our forecast is 67 MEUR. Thus, a lowering of guidance is already in our expectations. The continued subdued market development supports our expectations, although beverage sales in Finland and Norway account for only about 30% of the company’s revenue.
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Capital Markets Day is approaching, @Rauli_Juva gets to taste the products, perhaps the share value will also “become clearer” at the same time 
: Muistutus: Kutsu Anoran vuoden 2025 pääomamarkkinapäivään | Kauppalehti
Anora, the Nordic region’s leading wine and spirits company, invites analysts, institutional investors, banks, and media representatives to its Capital Markets Day (CMD) held in Helsinki. The event will be held on Wednesday, November 5, 2025, from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM at Valkoinen Sali (Aleksanterinkatu 16-18, 00170 Helsinki). The day’s key presentations can also be followed via a live English webcast at Anora's Capital Markets Day .
The Capital Markets Day will focus on Anora’s plans to create sustainable profitable growth. Anora’s work to develop an updated strategy is divided into the following phases: Fit & Fix and Focus. The Fit & Fix phases will bring short- and medium-term performance improvements for 2025-2026, while the Focus phase will support growth initiatives from 2026 onwards. Management presentations will outline Anora’s measures to achieve profitable growth and financial targets. More information on the day’s topics will be published closer to the event.
In addition to CEO Kirsi Puntila, the day’s speakers include CFO Stein Eriksen and Anora’s business segment leaders Hannu Vähämurto (Industrial), Janne Halttunen (Wine), and Imre Avalo (Spirits). In addition to the main presentations, on-site participants will have the opportunity to attend small group sessions with Imre Avalo and Janne Halttunen, where more of Anora’s latest product innovations and iconic brands will be presented.
Closer to the event, more detailed information about the webcast, event schedule, and practical arrangements can be found on Anora’s website at www.anora.com/fi/sijoittajat/cmd-2025. The webcast recording of the presentations and presentation materials will be available on the website after the event. The event and all presentation materials will be in English.
Registration for on-site participation
We kindly ask participants to register by October 24, 2025, using the English form available below or on Anora’s website at Pääomamarkkinapäivä 2025.
Before the event begins, participants are welcome to lunch with Anora’s management. Lunch starts at 11:00 AM in Valkoinen Sali.
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Apparently, OP has issued a target price and recommendation upgrade before Q3, Fri 31.10. Does anyone have access to their analysis!? From Kauppalehti’s quick news: OP raised Anora’s share target price to 3.60 euros from 3.40 euros. The recommendation rose to Buy, previous Add.
Last year, Anora issued a negative profit warning on 14.10, so perhaps we are already in clear waters, or at least the situation is not necessarily as bad as last autumn. The guidance for comparable EBITDA is 70-75 million. However, the CEO has also changed in the meantime, so perhaps they are just slower this time 
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They consider the guidance for this year too optimistic, but cost-saving measures and the trimming of the sales portfolio support a better future.
Dividend yield mentioned. ^^
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OP estimates a quite nice dividend yield, 0.26 and for next year 0.30 e. “ For a stone-cold sober person?” Juva clearly has less 
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Another new blow to Anora!? According to Financial Times sources, the EU is considering classifying ethanol as a hazardous substance, which would endanger hand sanitizer. HS has covered the news: EU harkitsee etanolin kieltämistä, miten se vaikuttaa käsideseihin? | HS.fi
Here’s a more in-depth article on the topic: EU:n käsidesikielto monen mutkan takana – päätöksiin voi mennä vuosia | Terveys | Yle
Alcohol is not, after all, being banned. Humankind has used alcohol since Noah’s time. Noah was a farmer and the first to plant a vineyard. Since then, numerous monasteries in Europe have protected the production of beer, wine, and whiskey throughout the centuries.
France, Spain, and Italy, as wine countries, ensure that alcohol is
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Hello!
In Anora, a traditional Q3 interview will be conducted on Friday, and an interview is also planned in connection with the CMD on 5.11. You can submit questions for these if anything comes to mind. Larger/longer-term matters will probably be asked more in the CMD interview, and in connection with Q3, we will focus on this year.
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In 2023, the company sold the Larsen, Renault, Monopol, and Ibis brands, which belonged to its cognac business, to focus on other key brands and its growth strategy. Was there a fundamental error in the growth strategy in light of the current view? Is the same growth strategy still being pursued, which has led to a decline of about half of the company’s value?
Does Vectura have a role in Anora’s future?
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To this I can answer on my own behalf that the quality of the strategy cannot be assessed much, as it was never really implemented. The company ran into profitability problems almost immediately after the current strategy was announced and has largely had to focus on acute profitability and balance sheet challenges ever since. One thing that certainly went wrong even before the current strategy was announced was the Globus acquisition.
Hopefully, the CMD and the information announced in connection with it will address the growth strategy or strategy in general going forward, but it will certainly also be discussed in the interview and, of course, reflected against the failures of recent years. The Vectura question is a very good one, even if it is not very significant in terms of results.
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Here are Rauli’s pre-thoughts ahead of Anora’s Q3 release on Friday.
Although the comparison period is relatively weak, we forecast Anora’s revenue to remain at the comparison period’s level and the result to improve only marginally. Our full-year adjusted EBITDA forecast is below the company’s guidance (67.5 MEUR vs. guidance 70-75 MEUR), so we see a slight decrease in guidance in connection with the results as possible.
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