Demand for sports nutrition products, such as muscle building protein powder, helped underlying trading profit at global ingredients business Glanbia (GLB) jump 9 per cent to €227m (£190m) last year, offsetting continued weakness in the Irish dairy division.
The bumper trading in sports nutrition was almost entirely volume driven, reflecting a strong US market, where Glanbia increased its share. Underlying sales rose 16 per cent to €655m, pushing up trading profit by 28 per cent to €71m. Acquisitions included Scandinavian sports nutrition company Nutramino, while a production facility in Chicago will be commissioned this year to boost capacity organically.
Global ingredients, Glanbia's biggest division, saw profit grow 8 per cent to €102m as good trading at the US cheese and customised solutions categories offset a slightly weaker performance in ingredient technologies, which was hit by falling whey and lactose prices. Sales jumped 12 per cent, boosted by the acquisition of a specialist cheese producer in Idaho.
The Irish dairy division won the wooden spoon, with trading profit down 29 per cent to €15m. High milk prices and a tough retail environment have hit the consumer products segment. A cost-cutting programme is now under way, alongside plans to build a €15m ultra-heat-treated facility to cater to the Chinese, European and Middle Eastern long-life milk markets.
Broker Goodbody expects adjusted EPS of 60¢ in 2014, up from 55¢ in 2013.
| GLANBIA (GLB) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 1,123¢ | MARKET VALUE: | €3.3bn | |
| TOUCH: | 1,120-1,125p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 1,150¢ | LOW: 809¢ |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 0.9% | PE RATIO: | 22 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 215¢* | NET DEBT: | 58% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (€bn) | Pre-tax profit (€m) | Earnings per share (¢) | Dividend per share (¢) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 1.83 | 143 | 38.5 | 6.84 |
| 2010 | 2.17 | 135 | 36.9 | 7.52 |
| 2011 | 1.93 | 106 | 38.2 | 8.27 |
| 2012 | 2.21 | 150 | 49.3 | 9.09 |
| 2014** | 2.38 | 176 | 51.0 | 10 |
| % change | +8 | +17 | +3 | +10 |
Ex-div: 2 Apr Payment: 16 May *Includes intangible assets of €454m, or 154¢ a share £1=€1.19 **Year to 4 Jan 2014 | ||||
