International food and beverage manufacturing company Thai Union reported positive performance in its ambient and petcare segments in the fourth quarter of 2024, leading to gross profit margin gains and helping the firm close out a strong year overall.
Thai Union released its Q4 results on 17 February, which highlighted that the company achieved net profits of THB 1.2 billion (USD 36 million, EUR 34.3 million) in the quarter.
In the same period a year prior, the firm reported a net profit loss of THB 17.2 billion (USD 509.9 million, EUR 486.5 million), which was mainly due to a one-time impairment charge the company paid in relation to its exit from the struggling U.S. restaurant chain Red Lobster.
Thai Union first invested into Red Lobster in 2016 and then was part of a consortium that acquired it outright in 2020. After Red Lobster posted years of consecutive losses, the company announced in January 2024 it would divest from its minority share in Red Lobster and take a one-time, non-cash impairment charge of THB 18.5 billion (USD 548.8 million, EUR 523.5 million) that would go on its Q4 2023 financial report.
Excluding the impairment charge and any other contributions linked to Red Lobster, the firm actually posted an adjusted net profit of THB 1.5 billion (USD 44.3 million, EUR 42.3 million) in Q4 2023.
Though the firm’s Q4 2024 net profit dropped compared to its adjusted net profit in the same three-month span of 2023, the firm’s gross profit in Q4 2024 rose 3.6 percent year over year to THB 6.5 billion (USD 194.5 million, EUR 185.5 million), driven primarily by improved performance within Thai Union’s ambient and petcare segments, along with growth in its feed business.
Thai Union’s gross profit margin (GPM) in the quarter also increased to 18.7 percent, higher than 17.8 percent recorded in Q4 2023, reaching its third-highest quarterly level over the past 14 quarters.
Overall sales in Q4 2024 decreased 1.2 percent year over year to THB 35.1 billion (USD 1 billion, EUR 993 million), mainly due to the appreciation of the Thai baht against other major currencies. Nevertheless, organic sales in the quarter grew 1.9 percent compared to a year earlier, while sales by volume surged 6.7 percent year over year.
Broken down by segment, the GPM of the firm’s ambient business in Q4 hit 20.6 percent, which was up from 17.4 percent in Q4 2023. Thai Union attributed the segment’s growth largely to the rise in global demand and lower material costs in Thai Union’s inventory...
