France’s main poultry firm LDC Group stories a year-on-year enhance in manufacturing quantity for the first six months of its monetary yr, whereas income slipped as buying and selling patterns return to regular. Seven acquisitions have been made by the corporate, or are in progress.
For the primary half on this monetary yr, LDC Group is reporting a return to a extra regular enterprise sample, following a interval of buying and selling hit by avian influenza outbreaks and distinctive pricing tendencies.
Income for the six months to August of 2024 was EUR2.985 billion (US$3.15 billion), which compares with EUR3.022 billion for a similar interval of the earlier yr (2023-2024).
Following a technique of accelerating output, the corporate stories a complete manufacturing quantity of 550,500 metric tons (mt) for the most recent six months — up from 524,900mt within the comparable interval. This represents a 4.9% enhance in quantity, whereas gross sales worth was down 1.2% year-on-year. At fixed alternate charges and on a like-for-like foundation, the quantity was up 3.6%, and income dipped by 3.9%.
For the reporting interval, revenue (expressed as Earnings Earlier than Curiosity, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization; EBITDA) was EUR257.1 million — down from EUR290.7 million within the first half of the earlier yr.
Contrasting tendencies in enterprise segments
Over the primary half of 2024-2025, gross sales by LDC’s Poultry division (excluding upstream) had been 4.5% larger by quantity, however 4.1% decrease by income in contrast with the identical interval of the earlier yr. The corporate attributed the enlargement in gross sales quantity to robust gross sales of its branded merchandise and commonplace chickens, as effectively as to the success of its promotional efforts. The agency stories it’s at the moment engaged on a plan to revitalize gross sales for this section.
Together with its up-steam actions in Poultry, half-year gross sales had been 4.5% larger in quantity, however income 2.3% decrease than the comparable interval at simply over EUR2.21 billion.
For its Worldwide enterprise, LDC stories a year-on-year discount in gross sales income of 4.6% to only below EUR369 million, whereas the tonnage was up by 3.9%. It highlights a discount in duck gross sales from the comparable interval being partially offset by robust gross sales of hen.
With a brand new acquisition built-in into the section in early 2024, the group’s Catered Meals enterprise raised its manufacturing quantity for the primary half of the yr by 7.7%, and generated 7.2% extra income to virtually EUR456 million.
7 acquisitions made or in progress
Over the six-month interval, LDC Group has continued on the acquisition path, because the firm report outlines.
Including to its Poultry enterprise in France, LDC has built-in the Favid enterprise since July of this yr, following LDC’s acquisition of 80% of the agency’s capital, and its workforce of 45. Nonetheless awaiting approval of the competitors authority is LDC’s acquisition of Routhiau Group in the identical sphere.
For its worldwide enterprise group, Poland turkey breeder Indykpol has been built-in into the group since early August. Consolidating its place within the nation, the group introduced it was buying the Konspol facility in June. Moreover, the group has gained a foothold in Romania by buying Calibra, a producer of breaded merchandise.
In October of 2024, LDC introduced that it had entered into an settlement with ECF Group (European Comfort Meals) with the view to buying a majority share of its capital. A pacesetter within the German marketplace for cooked and frozen poultry and vegetable-based merchandise, ECF has round 200 workers in northern Germany, and turnover near EUR80 million in 2023. Each events goal to finalize the transaction by the top of 2024.
Including to its Catered Meals operations, LDC has acquired the Pierre Martinet Group, a frontrunner within the French salad market. Nonetheless topic to approval by the competitors authorities, that is anticipated to strengthen significantly LDC’s place on this section.
Prospects for the complete 2024-2025 monetary yr
Describing its first-half outcomes as “passable,” LDC Group confirms that it’s on monitor to attain its goals for the complete yr. Goal income for the 12 months stays at EUR6.2 billion, with an working margin of 5%.
In response to the expectation of additional rising prices, the corporate stories that it’s in negotiations with its prospects, regardless of on-going constraints in client buying energy.
LDC has reaffirmed its dedication to its farmer-suppliers, supporting merchandise of French origin, and various species. It specifies this embrace label and natural merchandise from turkeys, geese, guinea fowl, younger cockerels, quails, pigeons, and rabbits, in addition to chickens.
In line with its strategic plan, the group is ready to proceed its acquisition program within the coming months.
For the 2025-2026 fiscal yr, its targets are for income to exceed EUR7 billion, and for EBITDA to be close to to EUR560 million.
Extra on LDC Group
Annual slaughtering of greater than 477 million birds places LDC Group third within the rankings of the main poultry firms in Europe, based on WATTPoultry.com’s Prime Poultry Corporations survey for 2023. In addition to chickens, the corporate additionally produces meat merchandise from different poultry, as effectively as desk eggs.
A family-owned and France-based agri-food firm, LDC (Lambert Dodard Chancereul) specializes within the processing and the gross sales of poultry, in addition to contemporary and frozen prepared meals merchandise. Amongst its manufacturers are Loué, Le Gaulois, Maître CoQ, Doux, Marie, Traditions d’Asie, Drosed, and Nature-et-Respect.
Based mostly in France, the LDC Group additionally has operations in Poland, Hungary, Belgium, and the UK. With a workforce of 25,000, the firm has 102 websites. Group turnover within the final full monetary yr was near EUR6.2 billion.
The LDC Group is listed on the Paris inventory alternate. In response to the agency’s website online, it’s experiencing sustainable, balanced, and managed growth primarily based on natural progress and acquisitions in Europe.
