Danone Exceeds Q1 Sales Expectations, Sticks To 2024 Goals

Danone beat expectations with its latest quarterly sales report, as volumes rose despite struggling with higher investment costs across all areas shell

The world’s leading yogurt maker has been able to use inflation to cover these costs, albeit at a slower pace than previously expected

Maintaining the target, Danone is targeting sales growth of 3% to 5% by 2024, and a modest increase in recurring operating margins

Third-quarter sales rose 4.1% to 6.789 billion euros ($7.25 billion) on a like-for-like basis, beating the 3.4% growth forecast according to 17 analysts compiled by the company

Price manipulation has become a common tactic used by leading companies such as Nestle and Unilever to offset rising costs of goods and services

But there have been concerns about the potential erosion of market share by private equity firms, which prompted Danone to announce that inflation has slowed compared to previous years

The company used a 2.9% price increase in the first quarter of 2024, slower from the 4.3% price increase seen in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Despite the price adjustments, sales volume/mix still saw a notable increase of 1.2%, exceeding analyst expectations.

Antoine de Saint-Afrique, CEO of Danone, expressed confidence in the company’s growth in the challenging terrain, emphasizing their focus on strategic planning, geographic expansion and capital excellence

Underscoring its commitment to transformation, Danone intends to unveil a new version of its Renew Danone strategy at a Capital Markets event in Amsterdam scheduled for June.

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