Danone claims to be closing the first chapter of its turnaround plan with confidence after reporting annual sales above analysts’ expectations.
Like-for-like sales grew 4.3% to €27.4bn in 2024, surpassing the 4.2% rise expected by analysts.
The owner of brands including Evian and Activia Yoghurt also improved its profit margin due to higher volumes as price hikes slowed.
“We close the first chapter of Renew Danone with a strong set of results, fully delivering on our 2022 mid-term guidance,” said CEO Antoine de Saint-Affrique.
“This allowed us to drive operating leverage, enabling us to further reinvest in our brands and capabilities, and support the growth of our categories.”
Danone launched its Renew Danone strategy in 2022 to turn the company into “a truly science‑based, consumer and patient‑centric company”.
In December, de Saint-Affrique said the food industry is now at a tipping point. “Health, and the role food plays in health, will become more critical than ever.”
Danone’s growth last year reflected demand for high-protein products and coffee creamers in North America, and medical nutrition and babyfood in China.
Europe posted the slackest performance, with sales up just 1.7% in the year.
It now expects like-for-like sales to grow between 3% and 5% in 2025, with recurring operating income growing faster than sales.
Callum Elliott, an analyst at Bernstein, said it was a “solid set of numbers”.
Like rivals Unilever and Nestlé, Danone has made volume growth a priority as it looks to regain market share lost to cheaper brands during high inflation.
In the final quarter of the year, sales grew 4.7%, beating analysts’ estimates of 4.2%.
This was led by volumes rising 4.2% in the quarter as price hikes slowed to just 0.6%.
It was Danone’s sixth consecutive quarter of volume growth.
This week, Danone settled a two-year lawsuit with a coalition of NGOs in France over its use of plastics.
ClientEarth, Surfrider Foundation Europe and Zero Waste France launched legal proceedings against the company in January 2023, claiming it was not doing enough to reduce its use of plastic.
This agreement involves reinforcing a vigilance plan which for the first time, ClientEarth believes, maps the risks of plastics impacting on human health.
The plan also includes measures for the reduction of the use of plastic, the development of reusable packaging, and the management of plastic waste.
Danone said it was “delighted to have taken part in an open and transparent discussion with the three NGOs”.
No comments yet