General Mills reports 12.6% rise in Q4 2013 net earnings

US-based food company General Mills has reported that its net earnings increased 12.6% to $366.3m for the fourth quarter of 2013, compared with $325.4m for the same period in 2012.

The net earnings were driven by increased sales volume with the help of newly acquired businesses overseas.

For the quarter ended 26 May 2013, net revenues increased 8.5% to $4.4bn, compared with $4.06bn for the same period a year ago.

Segment-wise, the US Retail operations reported a 2% rise in net sales to $2.5bn, driven by higher pound volume, while operating profit increased 4% to $517m, primarily due to higher input costs and higher levels of in-store merchandising activity compared to the year-ago period.

The International segment reported 27% rise in net sales to $1.4bn, while segment operating profit increased 8% to $129m.

Bakeries and Foodservice Segment reported 2% decline in net sales to $502m, while segment operating profit declined 7% to $75m due to higher manufacturing costs year-on-year.

Combined after-tax earnings from the Cereal Partners Worldwide (CPW) and Haagen Dazs Japan (HDJ) joint ventures increased 38.7%to $21.5m, compared with $15.5m for the same period a year ago.

For the full-year, General Mills reported 18.4% increase in net earnings to $1.85bn, compared with $1.56bn in 2012, while net sales increased 6.7% to $17.74bn, compared with $16.65bn in the previous year.

General Mills chairman and chief executive officer Ken Powell said that the 2013 results reflected good growth from established product lines and important contributions from new businesses added during the year.

"Each of our three operating segments posted profit growth," Powell said. "Our cash flow from operating activities rose 22%, and we returned nearly $1.9bn in cash to shareholders through dividends and share repurchase activity.

"Our business plans for 2014 include strong levels of innovation on established product lines and a high-quality lineup of new products."

For the fiscal 2014, the company expects net sales to exceed $18bn and adjusted diluted earnings per share to grow to a range of $2.87 to $2.90 per share.

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Image: General Mills stated that the 2013 results reflect good growth from established product lines and important contributions from new businesses added during the year. Photo: courtesy of General Mills, Inc.