PARIS, France — French cosmetics maker L'Oréal confirms it is considering the sale of its retail unit The Body Shop.

In the company's earnings release, chief executive officer Jean-Paul Agon said "it has been decided to explore all strategic options" for the subsidiary, but that the company had made no decisions yet. The Financial Times had earlier reported that the business could be sold for about €1 billion ($1.1 billion).

The Body Shop has not performed as well as the wider company, with a 6-percent decline in sales in the fourth quarter of 2016. L'Oréal's overall sales rose 5 percent in the same period.

Its net income, however, fell to €3.1 billion last year from €3.3 billion in 2015 due to one-time charges it booked.