Imperial Brands (IMB) sees FY operating profit jump 15.2%
13:04, 16 November 2021
Tobacco company Imperial Brands (IMB) saw its operating profit jump by 15.2% to £3.15bn ($4.22bn) for its financial results for the year ended 30 September 2021.
This was largely driven by the sale of its premium cigar division, which it recently sold to two private buyers.
Organic net revenue was up 1.4%; tobacco growth also inched up 1.5%.
Edison analyst Sara Welford described the results as “sturdy”.
“NGP (Next generation products) organic net revenue was down 3.9% as a result of planned market exits, and its losses narrowed as the group optimised investment in the business,” Welford said. “As a result, organic adjusted group operating profit saw an increase of 4.8%, driven by reduced NGP losses of 56.7% and higher distribution profit”.
Leadership change
The British company recently made changes to its leadership team, which included the appointment of a new chief executive Stefan Bomhard.
“We have changed the way we work, placing the consumer at the centre of our decision making. We have simplified the organisation, creating efficiencies for reinvestment. And we have introduced more rigorous performance management, enabling better prioritisation of resources.
“This approach is already delivering improved operational and financial outcomes. In tobacco, our sharper focus and increased investment in the top-five priority markets have begun to stabilise the aggregate market share performance. This is encouraging early progress in addressing the long-term historical declines,” Bomhard said.
The company’s five priority markets are the US, Germany, UK, Australia and Spain.
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Additional investment
“Our five-year plan to transform Imperial is divided into two distinct periods. The year ahead will complete the two-year strengthening phase, with further investment in our five priority markets and NGP pilots, the embedding of new ways of working and cost-saving initiatives. This period builds the foundations for the subsequent three-year phase, which focuses on the acceleration of returns and sustainable growth in shareholder value,” said Bomhard.
The company’s share price on the London Stock Exchange dipped more than 1% today.
Read more: Imperial Brands reports strong half-year results
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