Ahold Delhaize reports strong sales growth in the fourth quarter
January 19 2017 - 12:45AM
- Pro forma net sales of €15.5 billion, up 2.8% at
constant exchange rates and adjusted for week 53 in 2015
- Comparable sales down 0.2% at Ahold USA with
resilient volume trends in a solid holiday season
- Comparable sales growth of 2.2% at Delhaize
America with strong volume growth
- Outstanding sales performance in the Netherlands
both in supermarkets and online, with comparable sales up 6.6%
- Online net consumer sales up 27.9% at constant
exchange rates and adjusted for week 53 in 2015 in the fourth
quarter and reached €2.3 billion for the full year 2016
- Expected FY 2016 pro forma underlying operating
margin slightly ahead of 2015
- Expected FY 2016 free cash flow of around €1.3
billion
Zaandam, the
Netherlands - January 19, 2017 - Ahold Delhaize today
announced consolidated net sales of €15.1 billion for the
fourth quarter of 2016, an increase of 54.5% compared to the fourth
quarter of last year, corresponding to pro forma net sales of
€15.5 billion.
Overall our business showed a strong
performance in the fourth quarter, resulting in a net sales
growth of 2.8% on a pro forma basis, at constant exchange
rates and adjusted for week 53 in 2015. For the full year
2016, pro forma net sales reached €62.3 billion, up 3.4% at
constant exchange rates and adjusted for week 53 in
2015.
After a solid holiday season, in
particular at Stop & Shop New England, comparable sales at
Ahold USA were slightly down by 0.2%, while increasing market
share excluding Stop & Shop New York Metro as sales in the
fourth quarter of 2015 benefited from competitive closures in that
market. Shelf price deflation was 1.2%, broadly in line with
the previous quarter.
Delhaize America delivered strong
comparable sales growth of 2.2% and both Food Lion
and Hannaford grew volumes significantly. In October, Food
Lion implemented its "Easy, Fresh & Affordable" initiative
in 142 stores in the Charlotte market, with positive initial
customer response especially in Fresh. Shelf price deflation
was 1.7%, broadly in line with the previous quarter.
The Netherlands had an outstanding
performance with comparable sales growth of 6.6%, driven
by assortment innovations and improved service in our
supermarkets and strong sales growth of the online businesses
bol.com and ah.nl. In December, Albert Heijn was named best
supermarket in the Netherlands by market research company GfK.
Market share of Albert Heijn for the full year
slightly increased compared to last year.
In Belgium comparable sales decreased
0.9%, when comparing to a strong fourth quarter in
2015. Market share remained stable for the full year compared
to last year.
In Central and Southeastern Europe,
comparable sales growth was 3.4%. Growth was mainly driven
by Romania, with very strong comparable sales and further
expansion of the store network. In Greece, comparable sales
growth remained positive despite last year's exceptional fourth
quarter which benefited from market disruptions.
Outlook
For the full year 2016, we confirm our
guidance for:
- pro forma underlying operating margin for the
group to be broadly in line with our performance in the first
three quarters and to be slightly ahead of 2015's underlying
operating margin,
- free cash flow (including the Delhaize Group for
a full year) to be around €1.3 billion.
170119_AholdDelhaize_Q4-Trading-Statement
This
announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf
of Nasdaq Corporate Solutions clients.
The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely
responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the
information contained therein.
Source: Ahold Delhaize via Globenewswire
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