Premier Foods: Mr Kipling maker ups dividend on strong growth
Revenue at Premier Foods jumped last year, driven by growth in branded goods and international sales.
The Mr Kipling owner told markets this morning that adjusted profit before tax rose 8.8 per cent to £169.3m in the year ended March 29.
Profit after tax rose 11 per cent, with basic earnings per share up 10 per cent to 14.3p.
The company raised its dividend from 1.7p to 2.8p, a 68 per cent jump, as funds from its previous match-to-pension scheme were redeployed into its dividend.
Revenue from branded goods rose 5.2 per cent on volume growth, while total headline revenue rose 3.5 per cent.
Total grocery branded revenue rose 4.6 per cent and Sweet Treats branded revenue rose 7.3 per cent.
International revenue rose 23 per cent. Over the last five years, the international business has more than doubled.
Performance in Canada, Australia and New Zealand was particularly strong, Premier Foods said.
The company increased its capital investment by 26 per cent, in line with its strategy, in a bid to boost efficiency and capacity expansion.
Chief executive Alex Whitehouse said: “The business has delivered another strong year. Our premiumisation strategy continues to be highly relevant, reflecting the trend for consumers to trade up and treat themselves to ranges such as our Ambrosia Deluxe and Mr Kipling Signature Bites, both of which delivered very strong revenue growth this year.
“We have also made progress against all the pillars of our growth strategy; we significantly increased capital investment in our manufacturing sites this year, delivering improved efficiencies and providing the platform for future growth.
“As we look ahead to the coming year, we expect revenue growth to be supported by a strong product innovation programme and our expectations for profit growth are unchanged.
“In line with our capital allocation framework, we will continue to invest in projects to both increase efficiencies and automation and facilitate growth through product innovation and capacity while we also remain focused on pursuing M&A opportunities where we can add value to brands through the application of our branded growth model.”