L'Oreal reports glowing sales and operating margin in 2015

French cosmetics giant L'Oreal said Thursday that its sales and operating margin improved considerably last year, but profit fell by a third due to an asset sale in 2014.

The 3.3 billion euro ($3.7 billion) net profit in 2015 was up 14 percent, however, if the 2.1 billion euros it booked for the sale of the 50 percent stake in of dermatological research lab Galderma to Nestle is stripped out of the results.

Stripping out all exceptional items, profit at the world's largest cosmetics company rose 11.7 percent to 3.49 billion euros, thanks in part to a 12.1 percent jump in sales to 25.3 billion euros.

"In a year marked by a worldwide economic slowdown and increased international volatility, L'Oreal achieved strong growth in 2015, supported by a positive monetary effect, and outperformed the market in three of its four divisions," chief executive Jean-Paul Agon said in a statement.

He said L'Oreal's range of products and distribution channels combined with its wide geographic presence would help it weather "...a volatile and uncertain economic environment, particularly in some emerging countries...to outperform the cosmetics market and achieve another year of sales and profit growth."

The company will offer a dividend of 3.10 euros per share for 2015, up from 2.70 euros for 2014.