Brown-Forman – the owner of Jack Daniel’s and Chambord – has reported net sales of $723 million, in its fiscal first quarter 2018 results, up 9% from the same period last year.
The company has said that sales growth was driven by continued gains for Jack Daniel’s brands, including Tennessee whiskey, Tennessee honey, Tennessee fire and Gentleman Jack. The company’s bourbon brands delivered sustained growth, including double-digit underlying net sales growth from Woodford Reserve and Old Forester.
Reported operating income is also said to have increased from 14% in the quarter to $244 million. The news comes after Brown-Forman promised ‘strong year’ after $1bn drop in net sales.
Brown-Forman Corporation chief executive officer Paul Varga said: “We’re off to a strong start with 6% growth in underlying net sales and 12% growth in underlying operating income, both metrics representing a nice acceleration versus the company’s solid fiscal 2017 underlying results.
“We continue to foresee growth potential for our brands, most notably in American Whiskey, and accordingly, we intend to invest against this opportunity with ever-improving prioritisation, competitiveness, effectiveness, and efficiency.
“With only one quarter behind us, we are reaffirming our outlook for 6-8% underlying operating income growth while raising our EPS range to $1.85 – $1.95 due to expected full year benefits from our tax rate and foreign exchange.”
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