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Magners owner C&C group announces results following CEO departure
Magners and Tennent’s owner C&C Group plc today announced its FY2023 results, for the twelve months ended 28 February 2023, following the sudden departure of chief executive David Forde last Friday.
The Bulmers maker said it expects to see macroeconomic trends continue to create a challenging trading environment, particularly in the British market, despite posting net revenue growth of 18.4%.
Volume growth of 4.2% and price/mix growth of 14.2% have led to the net revenue increase, which stands at €1,689.0m (£1467.4m).
Operating profits also rose 75.6% to €84.1m (£73.0m), in line with guidance, delivered an operating profit margin, the group has said.
These financial year results follow news of the group’s shares tumbling at the end of last week. The Ireland-based drinks business announced on Friday (19 May) that CEO David Forde would cease to be a director with immediate effect.
C&C Group said it had “encountered significant challenges” with the implementation of an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system upgrade in the Matthew Clark and Bibendum business unit in Great Britain.
The company said: “C&C currently expects a one-off impact of c.€25 million associated with ERP system disruption in FY2024, reflecting the cost associated with restoring service levels and lost revenue.”
Patrick McMahon, group CFO, was appointed as chief executive on Friday with immediate effect. Ralph Findlay, company chair, has been appointed executive chair to support the management transition as McMahon will also retain his responsibilities as CFO until a new CFO is appointed, the process for which will commence shortly, according to the group.
Weakened consumer demand due to cost-of-living pressures, strikes across the UK, and the business’s latterly ERP system implementation disruption challenged margins in the second half of the year, the group has said.
However, market share for Tennent’s and Bulmers improved year-on-year maintaining clear market-leading positions, today’s results show.
McMahon, the newly-appointed CEO, commented: “Set against a challenging backdrop in FY2023, C&C delivered an improved performance against all financial measures. Increased balance sheet strength and inherently strong free cash flow characteristics have enabled C&C to return capital to shareholders through the re-instatement of dividends.”