2016 first-quarter revenue and financial information (1 January to 31 March 2016)
Year off to a good start
Organic growth of 6.3% (constant currency and structure)
- Continuing rationalisation of the product portfolio
- Europe and emerging markets driving growth
- Continuing improvements in operating profitability and tight control over working capital
Press release
Avignon, 10 May 2016 - Naturex, the global leader in speciality plant-based natural ingredients, announces its 2016 first-quarter consolidated revenue and financial information:
(€ 000's) IFRS (Unaudited data) |
Q1 2016 | Q1 2015 | Change (%) | ||
Current exchange rates | Constant exchange rates | Constant exchange rates excl. krill toll manufacturing sales1 | |||
Revenue | 104,404 | 98,602 | +5.9% | +3.3% | +6.3% |
Recurring operating EBITDA | 15,691 | 14,095 | +11.3% | ||
Recurring operating EBITDA margin (%) | 15.0% | 14.3% |
Controlled growth, on track with the 2016 implementation plan
Consolidated revenue for the 2016 first quarter amounted to €104.4 million, up 5.9% compared to last year's same period, including 3.3% from organic growth and 2.6% from the exchange rate effect.
Restated to eliminate krill toll manufacturing sales in the 2015 first quarter, organic growth for the 2016 first quarter on a comparable business basis is 6.3%.
To support this growth, Naturex has started to execute its 2016 action plan, in line with our Bright2020 strategic plan, focusing on the following three priorities:
- Simplification, by continuing to reduce the number of references, categorising the inventory and rationalising the product portfolio;
- Market access, by adopting a more structured commercial organisation, supported by reinforced regional management providing targeted responses addressing the needs of each customer that are fully aligned with the expectations of end consumers.
- Innovation, by enhancing the value of the offer in favour of products and solutions with clinically substantiated benefits within four key categories2 in order to maximise industrial capacities.
Promising growth trends for the two main businesses
Continuing rationalisation of the product portfolio
(€ 000's) IFRS (Unaudited data) |
Q1 2016 | Q1 2015 | Revenue mix (%) | Change (%) | ||
Current exchange rates | Constant exchange rates | Constant exchange rates excl. krill toll manufacturing sales | ||||
My Natural Food | 53,083 | 50,049 | 50.8% | +6.1% | +3.2% | +3.2% |
My Natural Selfcare | 37,029 | 31,452 | 35.5% | +17.7% | +14.7% | +14.7% |
Other activities* | 14,291 | 17,102 | 13.7% | -16.4% | -17.3% | -1.2% |
TOTAL | 104,404 | 98,602 | 100.0% | +5.9% | +3.3% | +6.3% |
* of which Q1 2015 krill toll manufacturing sales: €2,789,000.
The adoption of two business platforms, My Natural Food and My Natural Selfcare, reflects Naturex's commercial approach focused on the concerns of the end customer in terms of well-being, health and intuitive nutrition.
The My Natural Foodbusiness unit had revenue of €53.1 million,up 6.1%, bolstered by very positive trends for less processed products based on natural ingredients, inciting food processing companies to adopt an active approach in favour of product reformulation and transparent labelling ("Clear and Clean Labels").
The My Natural Selfcarebusiness had revenue of €37.0 million, up 17.7%. This performance confirms Naturex's solid position with high added value products offering clinically substantiated benefits and illustrating the Group's know-how in terms of traceability and quality control for raw materials within a particularly sensitive environment in the United States. Indeed, regulatory pressure in this market is tightening and consumer confidence has been undermined by recent announcements with regards to the origin and reliability of certain plant extracts contained in food supplements.
Other activities had revenue of €14.3 million, down in relation to the 2015 first quarter, largely in response to the discontinuation of the krill toll manufacturing activity and also reflecting continuing reductions in the number of references and the rationalisation of low-margin "commodities" products.
Europe and emerging markets driving growth
North America under pressure
(€ 000's) IFRS (Unaudited data) |
Q1 2016 | Q1 2015 | Revenue mix (%) | Change (%) | ||
Current exchange rates | Constant exchange rates | Constant exchange rates excl. krill toll manufacturing sales | ||||
Europe/Africa/Middle East* | 39,408 | 38,875 | 37.7% | +1.4% | +1.4% | +9.3% |
North America | 45,101 | 45,517 | 43.2% | -0.9% | -6.0% | -6.0% |
Latin America | 6,339 | 4,162 | 6.1% | +52.3% | +46.1% | +46.1% |
Asia/Pacific | 13,556 | 10,047 | 13.0% | +34.9% | +34.9% | +34.9% |
TOTAL | 104,404 | 98,602 | 100.0% | +5.9% | +3.3% | +6.3% |
* of which Q1 2015 krill toll manufacturing sales: €2,789,000.
This new geographical revenue breakdown reflects the adoption of a regional management organisation that has been aligned with the local commercial approach within the framework of the Bright2020 strategic plan.
The Europe/Africa/Middle East region had an excellent performance for like-for-like sales with revenue of €39.4 million, up 9.3% with a positive product mix in Europe offsetting the impact of the portfolios rationalisation and against a continuing backdrop of fragile economic conditions.
North America registered €45.1 million in revenue, down from the 2015 first quarter, reflecting mainly the discontinuation of certain product references. These simplification measures have freed up industrial capacity for producing ingredients with clinically substantiated benefits, in part destined for Europe and Asian markets.
Furthermore, regulatory pressure in the nutraceutical market in response to cases involving the adulteration of plant extracts disclosed by the New York Attorney General and verifications (channels and quality) as well as DNA tests of plant extracts conducted by Naturex, created tension in the supply chain and delays in bringing products to market.
Latin America and the Asia/Pacific regions contributed significantly to Group's performance with double-digit growth of respectively 52.3% and 34.9%, confirming the first positive effects of the new regional management organisation and the strong potential of these emerging markets.
Continuing improvements in operating profitability and tight control over working capital
Recurring operating EBITDA3 amounted to €15.7 million in the 2016 first quarter resulting in a margin of 15.0% compared to 14.3% one year earlier. This improvement reflects Group efforts to, on the one hand, enhance the value of its product mix and continue to reduce the number of references and, on the other hand to optimise both its cost structure and industrial capacities.
Working capital requirements amounted to €179.4 million at 31 March 2016, up from €156.01 million at 31 December 2015, reflecting stable trade receivables (54 Days Sales Outstanding) and a marginal increase in inventory levels to 42% of sales compared to 41% at 31 December 2015.
"Organic growth in the 2016 first quarter is on track with the priorities of our implementation plan established for 2016. This performance first reflects continuing product reference simplification and rationalisation measures, and commercial initiatives adopted to generate further value from our offering and accelerate our penetration in selected markets including emerging countries", commented Olivier Rigaud, Chief Executive Officer and Director of Naturex.
"Over the coming months, we will face many challenges: further cyclical economic turmoil is expected within our historic nutraceutical market in North America while the three other regions where we operate are still very volatile. We must furthermore continue to streamline our operating model while maintaining our capacity for anticipation and innovation in order to ensure the sustainability of quality organic growth over the long-term. These initial encouraging results bolster our commitment to rigour and discipline that is essential for effectively spearheading and executing the priorities we have defined for the 2020 horizon."
CONFERENCE CALL
A conference call will be held on Friday, 13 May 2016 at 9:00 a.m. CEST.
A webcast of the presentation will be available live and by retransmission from the following link:
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- Financial schedule
- 2016 H1 revenue 29 July 2016
- Upcoming events
- AGM (Paris) 21 June 2016
About Naturex
Naturex sources, manufactures and markets natural speciality ingredients for the food, health and cosmetic industries. As the Natural Maker, the company actively supports the global shift from synthetic to natural through an offer built on two main focus areas: My Natural Food and My Natural Selfcare. Naturex's portfolio includes colours, antioxidants, speciality fruits & vegetables, phytoactives, and numerous other plant-based natural ingredients, designed to create healthy, authentic and effective products.
The Group's strong commitment to quality, sustainability, continuous innovation process, and the talent of its people are at the heart of its success.
Headquartered in Avignon, France, Naturex has experienced steadily-increasing growth throughout the last 20 years. The group posted €397.8 million in sales in 2015 and employs 1,700 people worldwide.
The Group is listed on Euronext Paris, Compartment B - Index: Euronext Next 150, Enternext CAC PEA-pme 150, CAC Small & Mid, CAC Small, Gaïa - Ticker: NRX - Reuters: NATU.PA - Bloomberg: NRX:FP - DR SYMBOL: NTUXY
NATUREX, From Nature to You
- Contacts
Carole Alexandre Investor Relations Tel.: +33 (0)4 90 23 78 28 c.alexandre@naturex.com |
Anne Catherine Bonjour Actus Finance Press Relations Tel.: +33 (0)1 53 67 36 93 acbonjour@actus.fr |
1 Krill toll manufacturing sales in Q1 2015: €2,789,000. Business transferred at the end of 2015 to the JV with Aker BioMarine, with the disposal of Naturex's stake announced in March 2016 and, as of this date, completed.
2 Key product categories identified within the Bright2020 strategic plan: natural colours, natural antioxidants, fruit and vegetable-based ingredients, natural colours and phytoactives.
3 To better reflect the annual performance without the impact of inventory management measures that were not generated over the period, Naturex adopted a new alternative performance indicator. The destruction of stock and inventory provisions for more than two years are now eliminated from EBITDA under the term of recurring operational EBITDA. The previously used indicator of Recurring EBITDA took into account only the restatement of amortisation, depreciation and impairment of tangible or intangible fixed assets.