Aryzta AG: Announces Full Year 2015 Results

Zurich / CH. (aag) Swiss Aryzta AG announced its results for the financial year ended 31 July 2015. Key performance highlights:

Aryzta Food Group – Continuing Operations

• Revenue increase of 12.6 percent to 3’820 million EUR
  • Underlying revenue declined (2.2) percent
  • Acquisitions/(disposals) increased revenues 7.1 percent
  • Currency increased revenues 7.7 percent
• Food Europe revenues increased 3.8 percent to 1’647 million EUR; 1.0 percent underlying growth
• Food North America revenues increased 22.4 percent to 1’942 million EUR; (6.2) percent underlying decline
• Food Rest of World revenues increased 4.7 percent to 231 million EUR; 3.3 percent underlying growth
• Ebita increased 5.7 percent to 514 million EUR
  • Food Europe declined by (7.9) percent to 212 million EUR
  • Food North America increased by 19.4 percent to 275 million EUR
  • Food Rest of World increased by 4.6 percent to 27 million EUR
• Ebita margin decreased by (80) bps to 13.5 percent
  • Food Europe margins declined (160) bps to 12.9 percent
  • Food North America margins declined (30) bps to 14.2 percent
  • Food Rest of World margins maintained at 11.6 percent
• Net Debt: Ebitda (syndicated bank loan) of 2.54x
• Underlying net profit – Continuing Operations increased 1.7 percent to 330 million EUR
• Underlying fully diluted EPS – Continuing Operations increased 1.6 percent to 368.9 Cent

Origin – Discontinued Operations

• 623 million EUR net proceeds from exit of 68.1 percent Origin interest (including 225 million EUR post year-end)
• Completes Aryzta’s transformation to a business fully focused on speciality food
• Origin’s current and prior year results shown separately as «Discontinued Operations»
• Underlying net profit contribution – Discontinued Operations declined (43.8) percent to 30 million EUR

Aryzta Group – Total

• Underlying net profit – Total decreased (4.7) percent to 360 million EUR
• Underlying fully diluted EPS – Total decreased (4.7) percent to 402.2 Cent

Commenting on the results, Aryzta AG Chief Executive Officer Owen Killian said: «Aryzta has been in constant evolution to remain relevant to consumers as changing consumer trends negatively impacted parts of our business. This involved significant capital investment of 1.3 billion EUR and acquisitions of 2.4 billion EUR to reposition the business since FY 2010. Aryzta is now fully focused on speciality food, with the divestment of our Origin investment and reinvestment in Picard».

«Aryzta is well invested and strategically positioned to grow its relevance to customers through food innovation and customisation in a highly competitive market. Aryzta has strategic partnerships with large scale customers with complex supply chains. Aryzta Food Solutions provides speciality food for an increasingly sophisticated consumer, through independent and professional food service customers with differentiated offerings, while customers who fail to differentiate continue to experience challenges. Aryzta can help every customer to survive, either through supply chain partnerships or speciality food propositions».

«FY 2015 has been a disappointing year for shareholders as underlying revenue growth failed to materialise, resulting in negative operating leverage. Our focus is now on delivering the underlying revenue growth potential of the business, which is expected to generate a tenfold expansion in free cash generation in FY 2016 to 200 million EUR plus and building further thereafter. We expect to achieve underlying fully diluted EPS in the range of 365 to 385 Cent for FY 2016» (Image: pexels.com).