Nomad Foods on August 5 reported a revenue decrease of 1% to €596 million and an organic revenue decline of 4.5% for the second quarter of 2021 that ended on June 30. Profit for the period amounted to €51 million, while adjusted EBITDA increased 4% to €123 million, and adjusted earnings per share rose 18% to €0.40.
The Feltham, England-headquartered company is Europe’s leading marketer of retail frozen food products. Its portfolio of household name brands includes Birds Eye, Findus, Iglo, Aunt Bessie’s and Goodfella’s.
“We achieved strong results during the second quarter notwithstanding easing of restrictions across Europe and the anniversary of peak Covid-related demand,” said CEO Stéfan Descheemaeker. “Second quarter 2021 Adjusted EPS represents 18% growth versus 2020 and 22% on a two-year basis. Results were driven by improving market share trends, a recovering foodservice business, accretive allocation of capital and successfully navigating a dynamic inflationary backdrop. With more than half of the year behind us, we remain confident in achieving our 2021 guidance.”
Noam Gottesman, the company’s co-chairman and founder, commented: “Second quarter results clearly demonstrate the power of our value creation model as resilient base business performance was complemented by accretion from the Findus Switzerland acquisition and the effect of last year’s share repurchases. We are eager to close on the acquisition of Fortenova’s Frozen Food Business Group, a transaction that is expected to result in 2021 Adjusted EPS in excess of $2 on a combined and annualized basis and set a new baseline for growth. We have exciting growth opportunities, both organically and inorganically, and the approval of a new share repurchase authorization provides added flexibility to enhance shareholder value while maintaining a reasonable leverage profile.”
When comparing the first six months of 2021 results to the same period in 2020, revenue increased 2% to €1,303 million. The organic revenue decline of 1.2% was comprised of a 1.1% dip in volume/mix and a 0.1% decline in price.
Adjusted gross profit for the first half of the year rosed 4.9% to €399 million, while adjusted gross margin increased 90 basis points to 30.6% driven by productivity and transactional FX which more than offset dilution from the inclusion of the Findus Switzerland acquisition.
