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(Alliance News) - Greencore Group PLC said Monday it expects to report a decline in its annual earnings and revenue, despite a gradual improvement in performance throughout the third and fourth quarter of the financial year.
For the year ended September 25, the FTSE 250-listed convenience foods manufacturer has forecast an adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of GBP85 million, down 40% from GBP142.0 million reported the year before.
Meanwhile, revenue for the period is expected to be GBP1.27 billion, a 12% decline from GBP1.45 billion the prior year, as UK consumer sentiment and broad economic activity remains "both fragile and subdued".
For the fourth quarter of financial 2020, revenue declined by 19%, reflecting an improvement from the 36% drop in the third quarter, supported by a continued increase in demand for food to go categories.
With production fully restored at the Northampton side in mid-September, Greencore said it is well-placed to continue building back its business in the financial 2021.
"The fourth quarter of our financial year has seen an ongoing improvement in demand for our products. I am hugely proud of the way that our people are supporting each other and our customers during this extraordinarily challenging period, and it is their hard work and dedication that is driving a resilient and improving trading performance," said Chief Executive Officer Patrick Coveney.
"Our agile business model, the depth of our customer relationships and the strength of our product range has enabled us to already capitalise on new business opportunities that will help underpin the build back in group revenue," Coveney added.
Shares in Greencore were down 7.8% at 93.85 pence on Monday in London.
By Dayo Laniyan; dayolaniyan@alliancenews.com
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