Kerry Group reports strong growth

Kerry Group has reported year-on-year revenue growth of 10.9% for the first nine months of this year, to €4.4bn, with trading profit up by 12.1%.

In its latest interim management statement, the Tralee-headquartered food group yesterday said that the third quarter of the year saw the business continue to achieve "good organic growth".

"Performance was solid across all regions, notwithstanding the challenging market conditions in Europe and the continuing competitive consumer foods market situation in Ireland and the UK."

On a divisional level, Kerry said the nine months to the end of September saw its ingredients and flavours business generate a year-on-year revenue increase of 14.8%, with business volume growth outperforming growth rates in its various geographical markets. Strong volume growth was evident in the Americas, Asia-Pacific, and the Europe, Middle-East, and Africa divisions.

The consumer foods arm delivered "a satisfactory overall business performance", with annualised revenues increasing by 2.4%. The British chilled ready meals category continued to record good growth, with market conditions in the frozen meals sector stabilising.

However, trading in the Irish consumer foods market "remains challenging", Kerry said. While brands such as Galtee, Charleville, and Dairygold performed well, Denny was the only one to face "intense competition" from heavily discounted private label offerings.

Kerry’s net debt levels, as of the end of September, measured €1.4bn, roughly the same as what was reported at the half-year mark.

In terms of full-year outlook, the group said it remains "confident" of achieving its growth targets, slightly tweaking its earnings per share growth forecast from 8%-12% to 9%-11%.

via http://www.irishexaminer.com/business/kerry-group-reports-strong-growth-212588.html