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☆ Ahold Delhaize boosted by U.S. sales
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

May 10 (Reuters) - Supermarket group Ahold Delhaize (AD.AS) beat expectations with its first-quarter sales on Wednesday, reporting a higher margin for its U.S. stores while inflation hurt European profitability. The Netherlands-headquartered company, which operates Stop & Shop, Giant, Food Lion and Hannaford in the U.S. and Albert Heijn in the Netherlands, posted quarterly sales of 21.62 billion euros ($23.80 billion) to beat a 21.5 billion euro consensus from analyst forecasts compiled by the company. Ahold's underlying operating margin rose to 4.8% in the U.S. while in Europe it fell to 2.8%, hit by higher energy costs and a strike at Delhaize Belgium. Quarterly operating income was 822 million euros, in line with expectations of 823 million euros. ($1 = 0.9084 euros)Reporting by Helen Reid; Editing by Tom HogueOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Ahold Delhaize CEO: Seeing inflation and commodity prices moderating in U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailAhold Delhaize CEO: Seeing inflation and commodity prices moderating in U.S.Frans Muller, CEO at Ahold Delhaize, discusses earnings, consumer behavior in Europe, and the impact of macroeconomic conditions on the company's margins.

☆ Automaker Stellantis hires ex-Adidas, grocery executive as CFO
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Stellantis on Wednesday said it has hired the chief financial officer from global grocery company Ahold Delhaize to replace CFO Richard Palmer, who plans to leave the company at the end of June. Palmer will be succeeded by Natalie Knight, who has served as CFO at the Netherlands-based food retailer since early 2020. The automaker did not release details regarding why Palmer, who served as CFO through two major global mergers, is leaving the company. The resulting automaker then merged with French company PSA Groupe in 2021, forming Stellantis. Stellantis said Knight will be based at the company's U.S. headquarters in Auburn Hills, Michigan, "with extensive travel to Europe and the other regions."

☆ Corporate Climate Plans Fall Well Short of Targets, With a Few Bright Spots
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Dieter Holger | Carbon Market Watch S Executive Director Sabine Frank | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

The climate plans of major companies continue to fall short—but there are some bright spots. The net-zero plans of Holcim and H&M have also won approval from the Science Based Targets initiative. Decent disclosureWhile scope 3 emissions can be challenging to calculate and control, having net-zero plans that cover the complete value chain is best practice. Apple, iPhone manufacturer Foxconn Technology Co. and H&M were all noted for helping their suppliers to access renewable energy either with financial support, advice or connecting deals. The retailer has worked with suppliers to reduce packaging waste and to adopt farming practices that sequester greenhouse gases, as well as helping them access renewable energy.

The stores that Kroger and Albertsons may sell could be worth more than $1 billion, the sources said. Kroger and Albertsons will choose to proceed with the spin-off if they are unable to strike a deal with a potential buyer. Kroger, Albertsons and the FTC declined to comment. Haggen filed for bankruptcy months later and blamed the deal with Albertsons for its demise. Albertsons then agreed to buy many of the Haggen stores back for $300 million.

LONDON, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Incoming Unilever CEO Hein Schumacher gets seasick, according to his former boss at food group Heinz, but that never stopped him joining executive sailing trips and sticking them out. Heinz Company from 2006 to 2013 and was impressed by his leadership skills and business acumen," Peltz said. "Why hire a food exec if you are planning to sell the food business?" "Selling the food business will always be on the cards, but I doubt that it is top priority in the short term." "He's been given a very tough assignment but I have every confidence that if anyone could get Unilever moving in right direction, it's Hein," Johnson said.

☆ Bandwidth Challenges Limit Grocery Chains’ Technology Initiatives
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Isabelle Bousquette | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

Grocery chains looking to deploy new technologies are running into internet bandwidth limitations because of aging hardware and remote locations. “The more you put in the store, the more bandwidth it requires,” said Mr. Kosla. Further investment, however, might be required if the company decides to tap more cutting-edge, bandwidth-heavy tech in the future, Mr. Kosla said. There are a couple reasons grocery stores might struggle with bandwidth, one of the biggest being their locations. In other instances, Mr. Watkins said he might work with technology providers to find ways for processing data with less bandwidth.

☆ Factbox: European companies cut jobs as economy sputters
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

REUTERS/Stephane MaheJan 17 (Reuters) - Decades-high inflation and the impact of war in Ukraine have forced companies across Europe into lay-offs or hiring freezes. * HUSQVARNA (HUSQb.ST): the garden equipment and tools maker announced in late October it will cut 1,000 jobs, the vast majority of them related to the shift from petrol to battery-powered tools. * SIEMENS GAMESA (SGREN.MC): the Spanish wind turbine maker in late September said it plans to cut 2,900 jobs, mostly in Europe, as part of a plan to return to profitability. * CLAS OHLSON (CLASb.ST): the Swedish hardware store chain said in December it would cut about 85 full-time jobs amongst other measures to deliver cost savings and reduced depreciation. BANKS AND FINANCIALS* KLARNA: Dagens Industri reported in May the Swedish payments company would lay off about 10% of its 7,000 employees.

☆ From Amazon to The Trade Desk, experts predict these companies will be the most active acquirers of advertising businesses next year
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

There's a strong interest from acquirers in hot trends like commerce media and data consultancy. Experts predicted the companies most likely to be acquirers of advertising businesses in 2023. Many industry observers expect advertising industry M&A deal volume and value to be down next year due to volatile macroeconomic conditions. Experts across the advertising industry — from consultants, to agency executives, analysts, investors, and adtech leaders — named the companies likely to be active in the advertising M&A market in 2023 and why. Apple could make an under-the-radar adtech acquisition for its sleeping giant advertising businessIndustry insiders predict Apple has big plans for its $5 billion-and-growing advertising business next year.

☆ UBS reveals global stocks that will win — or lose — when China reopens
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

But when they do, Swiss bank UBS has identified stocks in the MSCI Europe index that will do better than others "in an environment where China's growth rebounds." The investment bank screened for companies in Europe that meet the following criteria: A high percentage of sales exposure to China. The stocks in the table below have been ranked using UBS' composite score, which brings together the above factors. London-listed engineering groups IMI and Weir Group and Asia-focused bank Standard Chartered were among the top 15 stocks with high exposure to China, according to UBS. According to UBS, shares of chemicals and specialty materials companies BASF , Solvay , Arkema and Sika are also exposed.

A UN study last year found "negligible" correlation between household food waste and gross domestic product, indicating most countries "have room to improve." "We do have a long way to make the goal," said Jean Buzby, the food waste liaison at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The USDA, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Food and Drug Administration agreed in 2018 to tackle America's food waste together. A spokesman for New Zealand's environment ministry said the country is finalizing its baseline food waste estimate so it can establish a target. SLOWEST GAZELLEIn California, which has America's most ambitious climate policies, officials are trying to ensure food waste goes to composting, not landfills.

Nestle and P&G both raised prices by less than 9.5% in the same period, having roughly matched one another since mid-2021. Unilever said price rises vary by category and market and not all consumers were experiencing the 12.5% hikes. Unilever has high exposure to regions and countries with high inflation including Latin America, Turkey and Russia, while P&G is more U.S.-focused, Bernstein analyst Bruno Monteyne said. "These countries have high inflation, linked to weak foreign exchange. "We are still absorbing significant cost, which has led to a notable decline in our gross profit margin," a Nestle spokesperson said.

☆ Inflation dampens festive spirit as German retail faces slump
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Rachel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BERLIN (Reuters) - German shoppers are tightening their purse strings this festive season, the HDE retail association warned on Thursday, forecasting the strongest slump in Christmas sales since 2007 as double-digit inflation weighs on consumer purchasing power. REUTERS/Michele Tantussi/File PhotoIn price-adjusted terms, retail sales in the crucial November-December period are forecast to drop by 4% year on year, the HDE said. The HDE’s survey of 500 companies found that a little more than half expected this Christmas sales period in Germany to be worse than last year, while 21% feared it would be considerably worse. In nominal terms, sales are expected to rise 5.4% year on year in the final two months of 2022, the association said. However, Genth warned that economic difficulties could deny German retailers the luxury of being able to offer discounts.

☆ We have an incredible ability to generate cash in good times and bad, retail CFO says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailWe have an incredible ability to generate cash in good times and bad, retail CFO saysWe have an incredible ability to generate cash in good times and bad, Ahold Delhaize CFO says.

LONDON, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Some European retailers this week forecast or reported better full-year sales after working to keep prices low to attract cash-strapped shoppers although others, including Marks & Spencer (MKS.L) and Adidas (ADSGn.DE) warned on profit. Many consumers have turned to cheaper private-label products, boosting sales for retailers like Dutch grocer Ahold Delhaize and Primark owner Associated British Foods (ABF.L), as they face a prolonged cost-of-living crisis. On Wednesday, Ahold raised its annual outlook for the third time this year, expecting low-double-digit earnings per share growth versus a prior mid-single-digit guidance. Carrefour said it would step up its expansion in e-commerce, open more discount stores and cut costs as it detailed its new turnaround strategy, . LUXURY GAPHaving less disposable income has meant many shoppers are holding back on buying mid-market clothes and other discretionary items.

☆ Beyond Meat is rolling out its steak substitute in grocery stores
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Amelia Lucas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Beyond Meat is launching a steak substitute in grocery stores on Monday. Amid the chaos, Beyond and Yum Brands' Taco Bell started testing meatless carne asada using its Beyond Steak product at restaurants in Dayton, Ohio. The Beyond Steak that will be sold in grocery stores comes packaged in bite-sized pieces. In the second quarter, Beyond reported U.S. grocery sales rose just 2.2% while restaurant revenue was off 2.4%. This year, shares of the company have lost 80% of their value, shrinking its market value to $821 million.

☆ Grocery deal could have European interloper
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Aimee Donnellan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LONDON, Oct 20 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Good luck to Kroger and Albertsons (ACI.N) – U.S. lawmakers are already getting concerned about a deal. A European interloper could make deal plans even harder. If investors reckoned there was merit in a deal, Muller could also use equity to beef up the offer. So regulators wouldn’t have to worry about a larger Kroger shutting down competing Albertsons stores. Less overlap means fewer operational synergies, so a deal with Ahold might not look as lucrative.

The spin-out structure would make it easier and faster for Kroger and Albertsons to divest stores if they cannot easily sell them outright, people familiar with the arrangement said. The companies may struggle to find many buyers because Albertsons' stores are unionized, making them less attractive to potential bidders such as private equity firms. Kroger and Albertsons are likely to shed their least profitable stores and keep the best ones to themselves, analysts said. That region contains the most store-overlap between Kroger and Albertsons and is where divestitures are most likely, according to analysts. They intend for the spun-off company to not carry any debt, the sources added.

☆ What would a Kroger-Albertsons merger mean for grocery prices?
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

A Kroger-Albertsons merger could reshape the grocery industry. The companies say they will divest hundreds of stores in areas where they overlap to win regulatory approval. Albertsons has higher prices than Kroger and other grocers, analysts say, and they predict Kroger will try to reduce Albertsons prices to be more competitive against discount chains like Aldi. Antitrust advocates say the merger would force out competition and concentrate power among the largest chains, driving up prices. A Kroger-Albertsons merger would spark a fresh wave of mergers and acquisitions as companies seek to keep up, analysts predict.

The companies said Kroger agreed to buy Albertsons for $34.10 a share in a deal valued at $24.6 billion. The tie-up comes during a challenging time in the grocery industry. The grocery industry is highly fragmented. Albertsons’ share was about 5%. Consolidation in the grocery industry has not historically paid off in the form of higher profits, he said.

From a broader national perspective, a combined Kroger and Albertsons does not pose any major threat to the competitive dynamics of the market." Kroger said it expects to reinvest about half a billion dollars of cost savings from deal synergies to reduce prices for customers. "The merger will accelerate our position as a more compelling alternative to larger and non-union competitors," Kroger Chief Executive Officer Rodney McMullen said. Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse were the financial advisors to Albertsons, while Citigroup and Wells Fargo advised Kroger. Kroger will have to pay Albertsons $600 million if the deal is terminated.

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