Press release -
Chr. Hansen adjusts outlook after encouraging Q2 results
Strong organic revenue growth of 13% in the first half of 2015/16: Food Cultures & Enzymes (13%), Health & Nutrition (2%) and Natural Colors (22%).
EBIT before special items increased by 23% to EUR 118 million. In Q2, organic growth reached 12%, and EBIT before special items increased by 22% to EUR 64 million.
During the first half of 2015/16, Chr. Hansen was positively impacted by the strong USD, while the negative impact from inflation in certain countries was partly offset by the use of EUR-based pricing.
“The results in the first half of 2015/16 were encouraging, with strong growth in Food Cultures & Enzymes and Natural Colors and strong improvements in the profitability for both divisions. The modest growth in Health & Nutrition was anticipated and we expect to see higher growth for the division in the second half of the year,” says CEO Cees de Jong.
“During the second quarter we closed the acquisition of NPC, and we commenced the integration of the two companies to ensure we realize the strong potential of the combined business in the coming years.
“To support the Nature’s No. 1™ strategy and to secure future growth in our microbial businesses we have changed our organization by creating a shared backbone for Food Cultures & Enzymes (previously the Cultures & Enzymes Division) and Health & Nutrition covering research & development, production incl. logistics, and IT.
“Based on the results for the first half of the year we raise our expectations for organic revenue growth to 10-12% (previously 9-11%). The EBIT margin before special items is still expected to be above the 27.1% achieved in 2014/15.”
| EUR million | Q2 2015/16 | Q2 2014/15 | Growth | YTD 2015/16 | YTD 2014/15 | Growth |
| Revenue | 228.9 | 208.8 | 9% | 443.3 | 396.9 | 11% |
| EBIT before special items | 63.9 | 52.5 | 22% | 117.9 | 96.0 | 23% |
| Profit for the period | 37.4 | 35.5 | 6% | 76.3 | 65.3 | 17% |
| Free cash flow* | 32.5 | 41.6 | -12% | 15.9 | 11.2 | 42% |
| Organic growth | 12% | 12% | 13% | 11% | ||
| Gross margin | 52.7% | 50.4% | 52.5% | 50.8% | ||
| EBIT margin b.s.i. | 27.9% | 25.2% | 26.6% | 24.2% | ||
| ROIC excl. goodwill | 36.0% | 32.6% | 34.3% | 30.6% |
OUTLOOK FOR 2015/16
The outlook for 2015/16 has been adjusted compared to the announcement of 14 January 2016.
14 January 2016
Organic revenue growth: 9-11%
Research & development expenditures incurred (% of revenue): 6.5-7.0%
EBIT margin before special items above 2014/15: above 2014/15
Free cash flow before acquisitions and divestments: above 2014/15
7 April 2016
Organic revenue growth: 10-12%
Research & development expenditures incurred (% of revenue): Around 7%
EBIT margin before special items above 2014/15: above 2014/15
Free cash flow before acquisitions and divestments: above 2014/15
The Q2 2015/2016 report was released today, 7 April, 2016, and is available from here.
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Chr. Hansen is a global bioscience company that develops natural ingredient solutions for the food, nutritional, pharmaceutical and agricultural industries. The products include cultures, enzymes, probiotics and natural colors, and all solutions are based on strong research and development competencies coupled with significant technology investments. Revenue in the 2014/15 financial year was EUR 859 million. It has more than 2,500 dedicated employees in over 30 countries and main production facilities in Denmark, France, USA and Germany. Chr. Hansen was founded in 1874 and is listed on NASDAQ OMX Copenhagen.
