BN Danone

By Giulia Petroni

Danone SA on Wednesday said that profit fell in the full year while sales growth accelerated through the fourth quarter supported by a solid performance across categories.

The French food player said net profit was 1.92 billion euros ($2.17 billion) compared with EUR1.96 billion the previous year. Recurring net income, which excludes exceptional items, was down 1.1% at EUR2.17 billion. An analysts' consensus provided by Danone had the figure at EUR2.14 billion.

Full-year sales increased 3.4% on a like-for-like basis to EUR24.28 billion. The recurring operating margin for the year was 13.7%, down 30 basis points on a reported basis mainly due to input cost inflation, which was partly offset by pricing actions and mix management as well as a productivity step-up, according to the company.

In the fourth quarter, sales were up 6.7% organically.

Danone said it was able to return to profitable growth in the second half of last year, stepping up pricing against strong inflationary pressures in the sector.

Guidance for the current year and the mid term is set to be provided at the capital markets day on March 8.

The company said it will propose a dividend of EUR1.94 a share for 2021, in line with the previous year.

Write to Giulia Petroni at giulia.petroni@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 23, 2022 01:56 ET (06:56 GMT)

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