Consistent delivery of strategy with sustained growth across all key organic performance indicators
Continued positive business momentum, despite selective destocking ahead of changes in route-to-market
Increase in proposed full year dividend to €0.055 per share, up +10.0% vs. previous year
Continuation of share buy-back program to be implemented up to an increased amount of €350 million in the next 12 months
FY 2019 -HIGHLIGHTS
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Reported sales of €1,842.5 million. Organic growth of +5.9%. On a reported basis, growth of +7.6% after exchange rate and perimeter effects.
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Positive organic sales growth, driven by key high-margin brand and market combinations, despite selective destocking in Japan and South Africa ahead of changes in route to market.
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EBIT adjusted1 of €408.0 million, up organically by +6.7% (+7.7% on a reported basis). Organic margin expansion of +20 basis points, driven by organic gross margin expansion of +60 bps despite the agave price headwinds, reinvestments back into brand building and continued strengthening of the route-to-market.
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Group net profit adjusted2 of €267.4 million, up +7.3%. Group net profit of €308.4 million, up +4.1%.
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Free cash flow of €258.5 million, of which recurring free cash flow of €267.3 million, at 55.7% of EBITDA adjusted.
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Net financial debt of €777.4 million as of December 31st, 2019 down €68.9 million vs. €846.3 million as of December 31st, 2018, driven by positive cash flow, net of acquisitions and non-core assets disposal and despite the effect of adopting the accounting principle IFRS16-’Leases’.
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Proposed full year dividend of €0.055 per share, up +10.0% vs. previous year.
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Continuation of share buy-back program to be implemented up to an increased amount of €350 million in the next 12 months.
Milan, February 18th, 2020- The Board of Directors of Davide Campari-Milano S.p.A. (Reuters CPRI.MI-Bloomberg CPR IM) approved the consolidated results and the draft separate financial statements for the full year ended on December 31st, 2019.
Bob Kunze-Concewitz, Chief Executive Officer: ‘In full year 2019 the Group continued to deliver on its long term strategy, despite the negative effects of destocking ahead of route-to-market changes in selective markets as well as the negative agave purchase price effect. Nonetheless, we achieved a positive performance across all the key business indicators in terms of organic growth and margin expansion.
Looking ahead into 2020, our outlook remains balanced in terms of risks and opportunities as uncertainty around macroeconomic instability and currency volatility, particularly in emerging markets, remains. We are confident to achieve a positive EBIT growth in value in 2020, driven by the key high-margin brand and market combinations. The tail-end effect of the destocking activities, linked to route-to-market changes, is expected to impact the first half of the year, on top of a tough comparison base. Moreover, the trend in marginality will continue to be affected by the increasingly elevated agave purchase price and the import tariffs imposed by the United States, the Group's largest market. Overall, we will also benefit from the recent acquisitions, as well as the expected future developments in the French market, thanks to the agreement for the acquisition of our local distributor, which is expected to be completed during the first part of the year3.
1 Before negative operating adjustments of €(21.7) million in FY 2019, mainly attributable to restructuring operations (positive operating adjustments of €1.9 million in FY 2018).
2 Group net profit before overall net positive adjustments of €41.0 million in FY 2019 (overall net positive adjustments of €47.0 million in FY 2018).
3 Closing subject to Antitrust approval.