Hain Celestial: Reports Q4 and FY 2015 Record Results

Lake Success / NY. (hc) The Hain Celestial Group Inc., a leading natural and organic products company with operations in North America, Europe and India providing consumers with A Healthier Way of Life, reported results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended June 30, 2015. Performance highlights:

Fourth Quarter Fiscal Year 2015

• Record fourth quarter net sales of 698.1 million USD, a 20 percent increase over the prior year period;
• Earnings per diluted share of 0.68 USD, a 94 percent increase; adjusted earnings per diluted share of 0.55 USD, a 22 percent increase;
• Operating income of 74.7 million USD, eleven percent of net sales; adjusted operating income of 90.3 million USD, 13 percent of net sales.

Fiscal Year 2015

• Record net sales of 2.69 billion USD, a 25 percent increase; adjusted net sales of 2.71 billion USD, adjusted for the nut butter voluntary recall in August 2014, a 26 percent increase over the prior year period
• Earnings per diluted share of 1.62 USD, a 16 percent increase; adjusted earnings per diluted share of 1.88 USD, an 18 percent increase;
• Operating income of 237.7 million USD, nine percent of net sales; adjusted operating income of 314.1 million USD, twelve percent of net sales.

«We ended the year with record net sales and earnings growth fuelled by strong worldwide demand for our diverse portfolio of leading organic and natural brands across many product categories, sales channels and geographies», said Irwin D. Simon, Founder, President and Chief Executive Officer of Hain Celestial. «We achieved these results while overcoming numerous challenges during the year including the largest voluntary recall in the Company’s history, a fire that limited production for one of our largest brands and disruptions with some of our distributor and retail customers. Our global team did a tremendous job in both the fourth quarter and fiscal year with product innovation, controlling expenses, improving productivity and successfully integrating acquisitions by leveraging our infrastructure».

Fourth Quarter 2015

Hain Celestial US reported record fourth quarter net sales of 332.8 million USD. In the United Kingdom, net sales were 184.9 million USD, and the Rest of the World segment reported net sales of 62.0 million USD. The Hain Pure Protein segment (HPPC) reported net sales of 118.5 million USD. The Company had strong brand sales in constant currency led by certain global brands. Net sales of brands acquired during or after the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2014 also contributed to the growth.

The Company earned net income from continuing operations of 71.1 million USD, a 99 percent increase, and adjusted net income of 57.2 million USD, a 24 percent increase, compared to the prior year fourth quarter. Earnings per diluted share for the fourth quarter were 0.68 USD, a 94 percent increase versus the prior year period, which includes a 20.7 million USD tax benefit resulting from an election made during the quarter to change the tax status of one of the Company’s international subsidiaries. On an adjusted basis earnings per diluted share for the fourth quarter were 0.55 USD, a 22 percent increase.

Fiscal Year 2015

Hain Celestial US reported record net sales of 1.367 billion USD. In the United Kingdom, net sales were 736.0 million USD, and the Rest of World segment reported net sales of 226.5 million USD. HPPC reported net sales of 358.6 million USD. The Company had strong brand sales in constant currency led by global brands. Net sales of brands acquired after fiscal year 2014 also contributed to the growth.

The Company earned net income from continuing operations of 167.9 million USD, a 19 percent increase, and adjusted net income of 193.9 million USD, a 22 percent increase, for the fiscal year. Earnings per diluted share for the fiscal year were 1.62 USD, a 16 percent increase, and on an adjusted basis were 1.88 USD, an 18 percent increase.

Fiscal Year 2015 Achievements

The Company highlighted several of its accomplishments during fiscal year 2015:

• Completed three strategic acquisitions:
  • Hain Pure Protein Corporation;
  • EK Holdings Inc.;
  • Belvedere International Inc.;
• Worldwide sales reached a record 2.7 billion USD;
• Achieved record adjusted Ebitda of 375 million USD;
• Hain Celestial US consumption measured by Nielsen of top 200 SKUs was up eleven percent with distribution up five percent;
• Introduced over 200 new innovative products worldwide;
• Delivered in excess of 55 million USD in worldwide productivity savings.

«Our outlook for growth in fiscal 2016 and beyond remains robust. We believe Hain Celestial is well-positioned as the consumption of branded organic and natural products continues to rise and our distribution footprint further evolves on a global basis in both new and existing markets across our broad network of sales channels», concluded Irwin Simon.

Fiscal Year 2016 Guidance

The Company provided annual guidance for fiscal year 2016:

• Total net sales range of 2.97 billion USD to 3.11 billion USD, an increase of approximately ten to 15 percent as compared to fiscal year 2015
• Earnings range of 2.11 USD to 2.26 USD per diluted share, an increase of twelve to 20 percent as compared to fiscal year 2015.

Guidance is provided for continuing operations on a non-GAAP basis and excludes acquisition-related expenses, integration and restructuring charges, start-up costs, unrealized net foreign currency gains or losses, reserves for litigation matters and other non-recurring items, including any product recalls or market withdrawals, that have been or may be incurred during the Company’s fiscal year 2016, which the Company will continue to identify as it reports its future financial results. Guidance excludes the impact of any future acquisitions.