Gruma: reports first quarter 2019 results

San Pedro Garza García / MX. (gr) Gruma S.A.B. de C.V. reported Q4/2018 financial results. Highlights:

• Consolidated sales volume increased 1 percent driven mainly by Gruma Europe, Gruma USA and Gruma Centroamérica.
• Net sales grew 6 percent mostly in connection with volume growth and better average prices at Gruma USA, price increases at Gimsa, volume growth at Gruma Centroamérica, and the peso weakness effect, the latter representing 36 percent of the increase.
• Consolidated Ebitda rose 7 percent, and Ebitda margin increased to 15.5 percent from 15.4 percent due to the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standard 16 («IFRS 16»), effective January 2019, by which leases are considered assets with the corresponding debt increase. As a result, lease expenses are reclassified as depreciation, therefore benefiting the Ebitda calculation. In Q1/2019, the benefit to Ebitda from the adoption of IFRS 16 was MXN 209 million on a consolidated basis. Excluding the benefit of the adoption, Ebitda would have declined 1 percent mainly resulting from severance payments related to a restructuring process across the company, and Ebitda margin would have been 14.4 percent.
• Majority net income declined 20 percent to MXN 1,029 million, affected primarily by higher selling, general and administrative expenses (SG+A), and higher interest expenses.
• Sales and Ebitda from non-Mexican operations represented 73 percent and 83 percent, respectively, of consolidated figures. The company reported USUSD 1.1 billion of debt at quarter-end, USUSD 4 million.

more than at the end of 1Q18. Net debt/Ebitda ratio was 1.5x. When considering the adoption of IFRS 16, debt increased by USUSD 226 million to USUSD 1.4 billion, and net debt/Ebitda ratio was 1.9x.

For additional information please read Gruma’s PDF file below (1193 KB):

20190502-GRUMA-Q1-2019.