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PR Newswire
11-02-2014, 11:19 PM
SINGAPORE – Food and beverage giant Fraser and Neave (F&N) on Tuesday reported first-quarter profit rose 3.2 per cent from the corresponding period a year earlier on increased sales and higher margins.
For the three months ended Dec 31, net profit amounted to S$36 million, up from S$34.9 million in the previous corresponding period as revenue increased 5 per cent to S$597 million.
Among its key business divisions, “soft drink sales grew 3 per cent, led by growth in key brands like 100PLUS, F&N SEASONS and F&N NutriSoy, and retained leading positions in the ready-to-drink segments of Singapore and Malaysia,” the company said.
“The group’s 55-per-cent held brewery in Myanmar also delivered strong results for the quarter, continuing the good momentum from fiscal 2013. Leveraging the strengths of its multi-brand portfolio and innovative marketing strategies, (the beer division) maintained its strong leading positions with volume growth of 43 per cent,” it added.
F&N said it had completed its distribution of a dividend in specie of all the shares in property arm Frasers Centrepoint Ltd (FCL) to shareholders on January 8.
“Returning to its roots from 130 years ago, F&N is now primarily a food and beverage company with a vision to become a leading consumer group in Southeast Asia,” it said.
F&N was taken over last year by companies controlled by Thai billionaire Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi in a deal worth S$14 billion. It retained its listing on the Singapore Exchange after restoring the free float of the company’s shares to about 12 per cent in December.
In December, F&N also proposed a cash distribution of about S$607 million, or 42 cents per share, to shareholders via a capital reduction exercise that will allow it to achieve a more efficient capital structure, taking into account the nature of the remaining F&N businesses following the spin-off of FCL. The exercise will not result in a cancellation of shares or a change in the number of shares held by shareholders immediately after the capital reduction.
“Upon the completion of this exercise, F&N will have distributed about S$12 billion to shareholders within a year, demonstrating the company’s prudent financial management as well as a testament of its unwavering commitment to maximise shareholder value,” it added.
For the three months ended Dec 31, net profit amounted to S$36 million, up from S$34.9 million in the previous corresponding period as revenue increased 5 per cent to S$597 million.
Among its key business divisions, “soft drink sales grew 3 per cent, led by growth in key brands like 100PLUS, F&N SEASONS and F&N NutriSoy, and retained leading positions in the ready-to-drink segments of Singapore and Malaysia,” the company said.
“The group’s 55-per-cent held brewery in Myanmar also delivered strong results for the quarter, continuing the good momentum from fiscal 2013. Leveraging the strengths of its multi-brand portfolio and innovative marketing strategies, (the beer division) maintained its strong leading positions with volume growth of 43 per cent,” it added.
F&N said it had completed its distribution of a dividend in specie of all the shares in property arm Frasers Centrepoint Ltd (FCL) to shareholders on January 8.
“Returning to its roots from 130 years ago, F&N is now primarily a food and beverage company with a vision to become a leading consumer group in Southeast Asia,” it said.
F&N was taken over last year by companies controlled by Thai billionaire Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi in a deal worth S$14 billion. It retained its listing on the Singapore Exchange after restoring the free float of the company’s shares to about 12 per cent in December.
In December, F&N also proposed a cash distribution of about S$607 million, or 42 cents per share, to shareholders via a capital reduction exercise that will allow it to achieve a more efficient capital structure, taking into account the nature of the remaining F&N businesses following the spin-off of FCL. The exercise will not result in a cancellation of shares or a change in the number of shares held by shareholders immediately after the capital reduction.
“Upon the completion of this exercise, F&N will have distributed about S$12 billion to shareholders within a year, demonstrating the company’s prudent financial management as well as a testament of its unwavering commitment to maximise shareholder value,” it added.