In This Article:
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Revenue: EUR8 billion for the year, with Taste & Nutrition revenue at EUR6.9 billion.
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Volume Growth: Group volume growth of 3.3%; Taste & Nutrition volume growth of 3.4%.
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EBITDA: EUR1.25 billion, up 7.4%, with a margin expansion of 120 basis points to 17.1%.
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EPS Growth: Adjusted earnings per share up 9.7% in constant currency.
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Cash Flow: Strong free cash flow of EUR766 million, representing 95% cash conversion.
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Capital Returns: Over EUR750 million, including share buybacks of EUR557 million and dividends of EUR205 million.
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Net Debt: EUR1.9 billion with a net debt-to-EBITDA ratio of 1.6 times.
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Regional Performance: Americas revenue of EUR3.8 billion; Europe revenue of EUR1.5 billion; APMEA revenue of EUR1.7 billion.
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Foodservice Growth: Volume growth of 6.8% in foodservice channel.
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EBITDA Margin Target: 18% to 19% by 2026, and 19% to 20% by 2028.
Release Date: February 18, 2025
For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.
Positive Points
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Kerry Group PLC (KRYAF) reported strong financial performance with a volume growth of 3.4% in Taste & Nutrition for the year and 4.1% in Q4, outperforming end markets.
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The company achieved an EBITDA margin expansion of 120 basis points at the group level, leading to a constant currency EPS growth of 9.7% for the year.
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Kerry Group PLC (KRYAF) generated strong cash flow of EUR766 million and delivered significant returns to shareholders, including over EUR750 million in capital returns.
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The company made good progress on sustainability commitments, including reducing Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 50% and increasing nutritional reach to 1.4 billion consumers.
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Kerry Group PLC (KRYAF) successfully transitioned to a pure-play B2B Taste & Nutrition company, enhancing its biotechnology solutions portfolio and completing the sale of Kerry Dairy Ireland.
Negative Points
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The company faced challenging market conditions in China, leading to softer Q4 volume growth in the APMEA region.
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Foreign currency translation was 0.9% adverse due to movements in the US dollar and weakness in some emerging market currencies versus the euro.
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The company experienced a net charge of EUR16 million in non-trading items, partially offset by profit on disposal of businesses and assets.
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Volume growth in Europe was flat due to soft market conditions, although there was improvement in the second half of the year.
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The Pharma segment within Taste & Nutrition has been at or below group volume growth for a number of years, raising questions about its role in the portfolio.