Glanbia sticks to full-year earnings forecasts as sales drop

Glanbia said its sale fell in the first quarter sales by 0.8 percent on the year as a strong performance by its performance nutrition business was offset by weakness in ingredients and Dairy Ireland units.

Stripping out the benefits a weaker euro rate against the US dollar, the Kilkenny-based global nutritional group’s sales dropped 1.9 per cent. Still, the company said continues to expect its full-year adjusted earnings per share to grow between 8 per cent and 10 percent, assuming no changes in currencies.

Shares fell more than 2 per cent at one stage in early trading in Dublin.

The company’s global performance business, which targets the sports industry with the likes of protein shakes and bars, delivered a 5.6 percent increase in sales in the first quarter. This was driven by a 10 per cent increase in revenues from acquisitions and 2 per cent rise in volumes as prices declined 6.5 per cent.

While the US market was strong in this business in the first quarter, some other markets were hit by a strong US dollar and “geopolitical issues,” understood to be a reference to concerns over the Brazilian, the subject of a political crisis.

Glanbia is forecasting the performance nutrition business will post “mid single digit” percentage sales growth for the full year and expansion of its operating margins.

The global ingredients business saw sales decline 5.2 per cent in the first quarter, with a 1.5 per cent increase in volumes offset by “continued challenges in dairy markets causing price declines of 6.7 per cent,” Glanbia said.

Sales in the Dairy Ireland business, where brands include Avonore and Kilmeaden, declined 6.2 percent in the reporting period, driven by weather related volume decline and price drop for fertilisers.

Revenues from joint ventures and associates fell 8.3 percent on the year-earlier period.

“Soft organic growth and continued price deflation is weighing on the stock this morning,” said Stephen Hall, an analyst with Cantor Fitzgerald.

While Glanbia has reiterated its earnings per share growth guidance for 2016 of 8 percent to 10 percent, consensus market expectations are already close to the upper end of this range, at 9.3 percent.

Glanbia’s net debt rose by €93 million during the first three months to €677 million, driven mainly by a traditionally high use of working capital in the quarter. Total 2016 capital expenditure is expected to be between €115 million and €125 million, it said.