Nestle has reported sales of CHF2o.9 billion for its first quarter, reflecting a foreign exchange impact of -2.8%; 3.9% organic growth; 3.0% real internal growth; and 0.9% pricing. Organic growth was 2.5% in developed markets, 5.6% in emerging markets. The company confirmed its full-year outlook of organic growth in line with 2015, with improvements in margins and underlying earnings per share in constant currencies, and capital efficiency
"As anticipated, the first quarter continued the positive momentum in real internal growth, with softer pricing," said Paul Bulcke, Nestle CEO. "We gained market share in the majority of our categories and businesses. The strongest performances were in Europe, in South East Asia and in Africa as well as for Nescafe, Nespresso and petcare. Our US frozen food business is progressing well. The trends seen over the last few quarters show the relevance of our investments and allow us to confirm our outlook for the year."
Nestle Nutrition saw sales of CHF2.6 billion, representing 2.6% organic growth and 2.2% real internal growth. Low pricing in the category was the result of softer dairy input costs. Emerging markets continued to be the main source of growth. Wyeth Infant Nutrition was a key contributor, mainly driven by its premium brand illuma. Sub-Saharan Africa, Indonesia and Mexico also grew well. In North America, the exit from some US regional WIC contracts and the transition to new product formats in baby food slowed growth. There was a solid performance from meals and drinks supported by Latin America and France.
