Portugal's Sonae MC has said that it has been boosted by new store openings, as it posted positive results for the first nine months of the year.
The group, which operates the Continente banner, saw turnover rise by 9.5% to €3.43 billion in the first nine months of the year, which it said 'reinforced' its leadership position in Portugal.
Like-For-Like Sales
'This growth was underpinned by a strong like for like sales evolution in all segments, boosted mostly by increased volumes, as well as the continuous expansion effort,' the retailer said.
Like-for-like sales at the division were up 3.4%, the retailer said.
The retailer's performance was also driven by new store openings, with the opening of 58 new stores, including nine Continente Bom Dia and two Continente Modelo outlets, in the first nine months; as well as by the acquisition of Arenal.
In terms of profitability, Sonae MC saw its underlying EBITDA grow to €340 million in the nine-month period, from €299 million for the same period last year.
For the nine-month period, it posted an EBITDA margin of 9.9%, which it said was a 'benchmark' in the sector.
At group level, Sonae posted an 8.8% increase in the third quarter of the year to give it a total turnover of €4.635 billion for the first nine months of the year.
It said that this was mainly helped by the performance of Sonae MC, Sonae IM and the consolidation of Sonae Sierra’s statutory sales.
Underlying EBITDA rose 21% yoy in the quarter and 24% in the first nine months of the year.
'Strong Operational Performance'
"Sonae maintained a strong operational performance in Q3, thus consolidating the positive results reached in the first half of the year," commented Cláudia Azevedo, Sonae chief executive.
"Consolidated turnover increased 9% yoy to €1.7 Bi in the quarter and 10% to €4.6 Bi in YTD terms. This strong growth level was mainly driven by Sonae MC but also by a number of acquisitions completed in the last 12 months, more notably the 20% stake in Sonae Sierra and a controlling stake in Arenal at Sonae MC. But even without these acquisitions, growth would have reached 5% in the first nine months of the year."
© 2019 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
