Hilton Food Group plc
The International Protein Partner of Choice
Hilton Food Group plc, a leading international protein producer, today announces its preliminary results for the 52 weeks ended 2 January 2022.
Financial highlights
· Group revenue up 21.6%* to £3.3bn (2020: £2.77bn), driven by growth across proteins and geographies
· Volume growth of 7.0%* to 492,588 tonnes (2020: 469,110 tonnes)
· Adjusted profit before tax higher by 13.0%* to £67.2m (2020: £61.1m)
· IFRS profit before tax lower by 12.3% to £47.4m (2020: £54.0) after exceptional items of £8.2m
· Adjusted basic earnings per share up 13.8%* at 61.3p (2020: 55.4p)
· IFRS basic earnings per share down 7.4% at 45.0p (2020: 48.6p)
· Strong cash flows from operating activities £121.3m (2020: £120.8m) with £57.4m capex investment and a strong balance sheet following refinancing
· Proposed final dividend of 21.5p, taking total dividend for 2021 to 29.7p (2020: 26.0p)
* On a 52 week constant currency basis
Strategic highlights:
1. Delivering sustained growth across all protein categories
- Meat and seafood 14.3% volume growth 2019-2021
- Vegan & vegetarian 26.4% volume growth 2019-2021
- Added value easier meals 36.0% volume growth 2019-2021
2. Growing across international markets
- Over 75% of Group's 2021 volumes produced in countries outside the UK
- Entered new markets across Europe, including acquisition of vegetarian producer Dalco
- Significant growth in Australasia with seafood launch in New Zealand
- Moving into North American market for first time with the acquisition of leading smoked salmon producer, Foppen with £75m equity raise
- Launched in UK food service market through acquisition of Fairfax Meadow
3. Becoming best-in-class FMCG for technology
- Ongoing transformation of Hilton Seafood with industry leading automation and palletisation
- Growing engineering and technology solutions offer through 2022 JV with Agito Group
- Continued growth of Foods Connected supply chain management services, with contracts in new sectors and geographies
4. Supporting our Partners to become First Choice for Sustainable Protein
- Launching new ESG strategy, The Sustainable Protein Plan, focused on 3 pillars of People, Planet and Product, with each pillar underpinned by three strategic drivers and new targets and goals
- Planet: Science Based Targets approved for Scopes 1, 2, and 3 during 2021
- Product: 76% average recycled content across entire tray range during 2021
Commenting on the results Chief Executive Philip Heffer said:
“This has been a year of delivery and diversification. We have delivered another strong financial performance with volumes and revenue both growing, maintaining a trend of continuous volume growth every year since Hilton's flotation in 2007. We grew adjusted operating profit by 12.7%*, in line with the 11% compound annual growth rate we have delivered in our fourteen years as a listed business. These results reflect an outstanding team effort as well as the power of our business model, which is rooted in the partnerships we have built with customers across Europe and Asia-Pacific.
“We have also made strategic progress in diversifying the business. Last year, we set ourselves the goal of becoming the protein partner of choice. Put simply, we want to offer all the proteins people want to put on their plates, in home and out of home, not just in Europe and Asia, but in North America too. To reach that goal, we have been transforming our business to expand into new protein products and categories, to enter new international markets, to deepen our technology and engineering capabilities, and to expand our sustainability commitments across all protein categories.
“The acquisitions we have made over the past year will accelerate this. Following the completion of the purchase of Foppen, we are well set to grow further and enter the high growth smoked salmon market. We already now generate more than two-thirds of our revenue, and three-quarters of our volume, outside the UK, and are therefore well placed to create long-term sustainable value, in spite of short-term challenges or market headwinds. While those headwinds persist, our model positions us well to provide nutritious, affordable, and increasingly sustainable protein at scale, fulfilling changing consumer demands.”