Del Monte turns around, posts $51.5-M income

MANILA, Philippines – Del Monte Pacific Ltd. (DMPL), the Singapore and Philippine listed food conglomerate, has turned around to a net income of $51.5 million for its fiscal year ending April 30, improving from a net loss of $43.174 million a year ago.

In the fourth quarter alone of its fiscal year, or from February to April, DMPL reported a net income of $19.248 million from a net loss of $4.163 million a year ago, according to documents filed with the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE).

DMPL said it posted full year sales of $2.3 billion, four percent higher than last year.

Its US subsidiary Del Monte Foods, which accounted for 78 percent of group sales, generated revenue of $1.8 billion, also four percent more than prior year.

DMFI increased its market share in the US canned vegetable and fruit segments amid industry contraction.

Similarly, the Philippine market delivered record performance for the full year with sales up six percent.

The company said all product categories such as packaged fruit, beverage and culinary posted higher sales, driven by an expanded user base and household penetration.

In addition, the market continues to benefit from the resurgent multi- serve beverage segment, behind trade expansion and digital-based awareness building initiatives for the one-liter Tetra Juice Drink line. The food service or institutional channel also performed strongly, the company reported.

 “Sales of the S&W branded business in Asia and the Middle East also posted a record performance, growing by 10 percent on higher sales from both the fresh and packaged segments. China generated strong growth in fresh, driven by distribution expansion,” DMPL said.

Joselito Campos Jr., DMPL managing director and group CEO, said the company has laid down the foundation for future growth.

“During the past year, we continued to lay the foundation for future growth and this is reflected in the sales and financial performance of Del Monte Pacific in fiscal year 2016,” he said.

“We drove improvements in our cost structure and better aligned operations with our strategic direction to gain market share, increase margins and expand into adjacent categories as part of a long-range plan to grow sales and profits for the company in the years ahead,” he added.

For fiscal year 2017, the company expects to to remain profitable barring unexpected circumstances.

 “In the short-to- mid term, DMPL plans to improve its financial performance by strengthening its core business, leveraging procurement synergies and optimising general costs. The closure of the North Carolina plant was part of this streamlining effort. In addition, the group will shift to a leaner organization model in the US to drive channel growth and bring down costs in line with competition,” DMPL said.