Irish agri-food entity Kerry Group has revealed reported revenue growth of 10.7% in its interim results for the first six months of 2019.
Announced this morning, Thursday, August 8, the international firm announced group revenue of €3.6 billion, reflecting 3.3% volume growth. Kerry’s Taste & Nutrition saw 3.8% volume growth, while its Consumer Foods division recorded 0.6% volume growth.
Kerry announced a group trading margin up 20bps to 10.7%; of this the Taste & Nutrition recorded growth of 20bps to 13.3%, while Consumer Foods margins were maintained at 7.0%.
The firm revealed an updated guidance for year expectations from 6-10% to 7-9% growth in earnings per share, constant currency.
A basic EPS of 135.5c was recorded; this compares to a figure of 128.3c given for the first six months of 2018. Meanwhile, the interim dividend per share increased 11.9% to 23.5c.
Kerry Group announced free cash-flow of €195 million, down slightly on the €201 million recorded at the same time last year.
Edmond Scanlon, chief executive officer of Kerry Group, commented on the results, stating:
“We are pleased with business performance in the period, as the group continued to deliver volume growth ahead of the market while expanding trading margins in line with expectations.
“Good progress has been made on the integration of recent acquisitions, which are performing very well.
“We are updating our guidance and expect to achieve growth in adjusted earnings per share of 7% to 9% in constant currency.”