Chr. Hansen reports solid organic revenue growth of 9% in the first half of 2017/18:
Food Cultures & Enzymes 12%, Health & Nutrition 8% and Natural Colors 4%. EBIT before special items increased slightly to EUR 135.9 million, corresponding to an EBIT margin before special items of 26.2%. In Q2, organic growth was 9%, and EBIT before special items increased by 2% to EUR 71.2 million. The overall outlook for 2017/18 is unchanged.
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| EUR million | Q2 2017/18 | Q2 2016/17 | Growth | YTD 2017/18 | YTD 2016/17 | Growth |
| Revenue | 263.7 | 259.4 | 2% | 518.2 | 501.1 | 3% |
| EBIT before special items | 71.2 | 70.1 | 2% | 135.9 | 135.6 | 0% |
| Profit for the period | 51.1 | 50.9 | 0% | 97.6 | 97.9 | 0% |
| Free cash flow before acquisitions, divestments and special items | 29.9 | 48.8 | (39)% | 11.0 | 29.8 | (63)% |
| Organic growth, % | 9% | 9% | 9% | 10% | ||
| Gross margin, % | 53.4% | 53.7% | 53.0% | 53.5% | ||
| EBIT margin before special items, % | 27.0% | 27.0% | 26.2% | 27.1% | ||
| ROIC excl. goodwill, % | 32.8% | 34.1% | 32.1% | 35.2% |
Solid development continues
CEO Cees de Jong says: “The solid development from Q1 has continued into Q2, with strong organic growth in Food Cultures & Enzymes from all product categories and regions. Sales of bioprotective solutions also continue to show impressive organic growth rates at around 45%. Strong sales in animal health were driven by an improved sales coverage in EMEA and APAC.
In addition, we continue to benefit from the trend where farmers and feed manufacturers aim to use less antibiotics in livestock production. Probiotics for dietary supplements in North America are still impacted by changing market dynamics, and especially inventory reductions by a few large customers, which suppresses growth temporarily. Growth in both dietary supplements and infant formula in Asia Pacific was strong.
Our EBIT margin before special items in Q2 improved significantly compared with Q1, and was on par with last year despite an adverse impact from currencies of more than 1%-point. Higher depreciations related to the recent capacity expansion were offset by improved production efficiencies in Food Cultures & Enzymes and a better product mix in Health & Nutrition.
We are satisfied with the progress in the first half of the year, and we maintain our overall guidance for the full year. Expectations to organic growth for Food Cultures & Enzymes and Health & Nutrition are unchanged, however, we lower our expectations to organic growth in Natural Colors for the full year to be below the long-term ambition of around 10%, due to the sales development in the first half of the year.”
Outlook for 2017/18
| 11 April 2018 |
12 January 2018 |
|
| Organic revenue growth | 8-10% | 8-10% |
| EBIT margin before special items | Around 28.9% | Around 28.9% |
| Free cash flow before special items, acquisitions and divestments | Around EUR 188 million | Around EUR 188 million |
The guidance for EBIT margin before special items and for free cash flow before acquisitions, divestments and special items assumes constant currencies from the time of this announcement and for the remainder of the financial year.
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Chr. Hansen es una empresa global y diferenciada de biociencia que desarrolla soluciones con ingredientes naturales para las industrias de alimentación y nutrición, farmacéutica y agrícola. En Chr. Hansen, nos encontramos en una posición privilegiada para impulsar el cambio positivo mediante soluciones microbianas. Desde hace casi 150 años, trabajamos para facilitar la agricultura sostenible, alimentos mejores y una vida más sana para más personas de todo el mundo. Nuestras plataformas de tecnología microbiana y fermentativa, incluida nuestra amplia colección de unas 50.000 cepas microbianas, tienen potencial para marcar un antes y un después. Al satisfacer las necesidades de los clientes y las tendencias internacionales, seguimos revelando el poder de las bacterias beneficiosas para responder a dificultades globales, como el desperdicio de alimentos, la salud en el mundo y el uso excesivo de antibióticos y plaguicidas. Como empresa de biotecnología más sostenible del mundo, llegamos a más de mil millones de personas cada día. Con el respaldo de nuestro legado de innovación y curiosidad para impulsar la ciencia, nuestro propósito de cultivar un mundo mejor naturalmente, «Grow a better world. Naturally», está en la esencia de todo lo que hacemos.
