Kraft Heinz Co raised its forecast for annual organic sales growth and beat quarterly estimates, helped by higher prices for the Heinz ketchup maker's packaged meals and condiments.
Pandemic-induced disruptions to the global supply chain and surging raw material costs forced Kraft Heinz, like other packaged food makers, to increases prices for it sodas and snacks, but some retailers are now pushing back citing waning consumer demand.
Kraft Heinz said on Wednesday a key measure for its sales volumes fell 2.3 percentage points in the second quarter hurt by a slowdown in demand due to price increases and supply constraints.
Still, the Philadelphia cream cheese maker forecast 2022 organic revenue to increase by a high single-digit percentage, compared with its prior outlook for a mid single-digit percentage increase.
Quarterly Performance
Net sales fell about 1% to $6.55 billion (€6.5 billion) in the second quarter ended 25 June, but beat analysts estimates of $6.39 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
Excluding items, it earned 70 cents per share, above estimates of 68 cents per share.
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Commenting on its performance, Kraft Heinz chief executive and chair of the board, Miguel Patricio, said, "Though the environment remains fluid, we are better able to anticipate dynamic conditions, adapt to this constantly changing environment, and demonstrate our resiliency against new challenges.
"We are anticipating and adapting to changing market conditions while managing inflation through pricing realisation and gross efficiencies."
News by Reuters, additional reporting by ESM. For more A-Brands news, click here. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
