F&N’s 9-month profit dips 3.9% to S$118.2 million, despite 10% revenue growth

Beverage maker Fraser and Neave (F&N) posted a net profit of S$118.2 million for the nine months ended Jun 30, a 3.9 per cent decrease from the S$123 million in the same period the year before.

Revenue went up by around 10 per cent to S$1.77 billion, from S$1.6 billion in the year-ago period.

Profit before interest and taxes fell 1.6 per cent to S$234.8 million from S$238.7 million, largely due to a reduced contribution from Vietnam’s Vinamilk, said F&N in a voluntary business update on Tuesday (Aug 5).

Under the F&B segment, which comprises beverages and dairies, the revenue for beverages grew 19 per cent from the corresponding period last year.

The company said a successful Chinese New Year campaign drove higher volumes for water and soft drinks, and that higher beer sales were attributed to F&N’s new beer brand, Tapper.

Meanwhile, revenue for dairies grew by 8 per cent, in part due to higher sales in canned milk in Thailand and export markets.

Revenue in the printing and publishing segment, however, fell marginally by 1 per cent, the result of the absence of one-off contributions that had boosted the previous year’s results.

Earnings per share for the period stood at 8.1 Singapore cents, lower than 8.4 Singapore cents in the year before.

Shares of F&N closed flat at S$1.43 on Tuesday, unchanged from the opening price before the announcement.

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