KARLSHAMN, Sweden, Jan. 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- AAK Group,
fourth quarter
- Total volumes for the quarter amounted to 582,000 MT (574,000),
organic growth of 1 percent (4).
- Sales amounted to SEK 7,380
million (6,992), an increase of 6 percent.
- Operating profit, including a positive currency translation
impact of SEK 12 million, reached
SEK 562 million (516), an improvement
of 9 percent. Operating profit per kilo improved by 8 percent to
SEK 0.97 (0.90).
- Net result amounted to SEK 401
million (354), an improvement of 13 percent.
- Earnings per share increased by 12 percent, to SEK 1.56 (1.39).
- Cash flow from operating activities amounted to SEK 626 million (566).
- Return on Capital Employed (ROCE), R12M, was 14.9 percent (15.8
at December 31, 2018).
- The Board of Directors proposes that a dividend of SEK 2.10 (1.85) per share be paid for the
financial year 2019, an increase of 14 percent.
Business areas
- Food Ingredients - operating profit improved by 9 percent to
SEK 349 million (321).
- Chocolate & Confectionery Fats - operating profit improved
by 13 percent to SEK 205 million
(182).
- Technical Products & Feed - operating profit reached
SEK 46 million (50), a decrease of 8
percent compared to the record-high fourth quarter in 2018.
AAK Group, full year
- Total volumes were up by 2 percent (5). Organic volume growth
was 2 percent (5).
- Sales amounted to SEK 28,510
million (27,592), an increase of 3 percent.
- Operating profit reached SEK 2,142
million (1,956), an improvement of 10 percent. Operating
profit per kilo reached SEK 0.94
(0.87), an increase of 8 percent.
- Earnings per share increased by 12 percent, to SEK 5.86 (5.21).
- Operating cash flow including changes in working capital
amounted to SEK 1,558 million
(1,090).
CEO's comments
Our profit growth continued in the fourth quarter with both Food
Ingredients and Chocolate & Confectionery Fats reporting strong
year-over-year improvement. We continue to improve our margin and
our operating profit per kilo.
Food Ingredients continue to grow, improving its operating
profit by 9 percent, primarily driven by our semi-speciality
solutions in Dairy, Bakery and Foodservice. The performance within
the Special Nutrition segment was mixed. Lower birth rates in
China and destocking by some
customers had a negative impact on Infant Nutrition sales in the
fourth quarter while we saw continued growth for Medical Nutrition.
Our business with solutions for plant-based foods generated strong
volume and profit growth.
Chocolate & Confectionery Fats reported double-digit profit
growth, driven by favorable spot business opportunities in the
quarter as well as an improved product mix. We continue to see
pressure from some customers to roll contracted volumes forward.
Our investment projects to increase capacity and strengthen our
supply chain have been completed according to plan. The sourcing
season for new kernels in West
Africa has been good and we have managed to build an
adequate safety stock to secure future production needs. With new
kernels at hand and additional capacity, we expect to reach normal
cost levels within the business area by the middle of the first
quarter 2020.
Within Technical Products & Feed, our crushing operation
continued to perform well. Our fatty acids business and our feed
business declined compared to the record-high fourth quarter of
2018. However, compared to any other fourth quarter, the
performance was very strong.
We have during the year reviewed our market and our capabilities
to define AAK's strategic direction going forward. Building on a
very strong historical performance, we will preserve the DNA of our
company. Passion, drive and entrepreneurship that can be found in
all corners of AAK, our unique co-development approach and customer
centricity, and our determined focus on sustainability will remain
key going forward.
The strategic direction will be focused on the opportunities
within the specific industries we serve as well as sustainability,
health and nutrition. We will step up our focus and investments
within Plant-based Foods and develop a Health & Nutrition
platform. For Special Nutrition and Chocolate & Confectionery
Fats we will invest for continued growth while focusing on
optimizing our performance within Bakery and Dairy.
We are well positioned with our offer of plant-based, healthy,
high value-adding oils and fats solutions, using our customer
co-development approach. We continue to see favorable underlying
trends in our markets and we remain prudently optimistic about the
future.
Press and analyst conference
The Interim report for the fourth quarter and year-end 2019 will
be presented today, January 30, 2020
at 10:00 a.m. CET at a press and
analyst conference. For participation, please see instructions
under the Investor tab at the AAK website, www.aak.com.
This information is information that AAK AB (publ.) is obliged
to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation and the
Securities Act. The information was submitted for publication,
through the agency of the contact person set out above, at
08:50 a.m. CET on January 30, 2020.
AAK is a leading provider of value-adding vegetable oils
& fats. Our expertise in lipid technology within foods and
special nutrition applications, our wide range of raw materials and
our broad process capabilities enable us to develop innovative and
value-adding solutions across many industries - Chocolate &
Confectionery, Bakery, Dairy, Special Nutrition, Foodservice,
Personal Care, and more. AAK's proven expertise is based on more
than 140 years of experience within oils & fats. Our unique
co-development approach brings our customers' skills and know-how
together with our own capabilities and mindset for lasting results.
Listed on Nasdaq Stockholm and with our headquarters in Malmö,
Sweden, AAK has more than 20
different production facilities, sales offices in more than 25
countries and more than 3,800 employees. We are AAK
- The Co-Development Company.
For further information, please contact:
Fredrik Nilsson
CFO
Mobile: +46-708-95-22-21
E-mail: fredrik.nilsson@aak.com
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SOURCE AAK AB