American drinks company Brown-Forman has reported that net sales increased by 9%, to $878 million, in the third quarter, with operating income increasing by 11%, to $304 million.
This brings the group's total sales for the year to date to $2.51 billion, representing growth of 9%, compared to the previous year, with operating income rising by 15%, to $894 million.
The group, which manufactures spirits such as Jack Daniel’s and Canadian Mist, says that these results were driven by strong growth in its American whiskey portfolio.
Paul Varga, the company's chief executive officer, said that business momentum continued through the third quarter, and that the company is now on track to deliver "high quality, top-tier results" in this fiscal year.
Whiskey Growth
Brown-Forman says that its sales growth was driven by broad-based gains from the Jack Daniel's family of brands, which saw underlying net sales increase by 7%.
Meanwhile, the company's premium American whiskey brands grew underlying net sales by 16%, with 22% growth from Woodford Reserve.
Strong gains were also experienced by the group's tequila brands, including Herradura (+20%) and El Jimador (+9%).
The company is now reaffirming its outlook for fiscal 2018, anticipating underlying net sales growth of 6-7% and operating income growth of 8-9%.
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Sarah Harford. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
