Molson Coors reported a 78.4% drop in GAAP net income in its full-year results, attributing the decline to impairment charges relating to the company’s Canadian operating unit; volume declines, inflation, restructuring charges and one-time pension and postretirement costs.
The company – which owns brands such as Coors Light, Carling and Blue Moon – reported GAAP net income of $241.7 million for the full year, compared to last year’s $1.116 billion figure.
With consumer preference for low-and no-alcohol drinks growing in many markets, falling volume sales across all segments saw Molson Coors report net revenues of $10.579 billion for the year ending December 31, 2019, a year-on-year decline of 1.8%.
Molson Coors stated that falling volume sales were “primarily driven by challenging industry dynamics, particularly in the US and Canada.”
For the fourth quarter of the year, the company reported net sales of $2.486 million, an increase of 3%, with Molson Coors’s premium light and above premium portfolio driving sales in the US –the company’s biggest market – offsetting the decline of economy beers.
The company launched a revitalisation plan in the third quarter of 2019, which reportedly involved a restructuring plan to streamline its operations by moving from four business units to two. According to Molson Coors, the restructuring aims to save approximately $150 million, which the company will use for future investments.
Molson Coors president and chief executive officer Gavin Hattersley said: “Full-year 2019 was a challenging year for Molson Coors Beverage Company.
“However, despite significant headwinds and continued volume declines, we grew NSR/HL and improved our mix, delivered strong free cash flow and cost savings, reduced our debt, and started making progress toward premiumising and modernizing our portfolio.”
“We know we have a lot of work still to do. That’s why last quarter we announced a plan to get Molson Coors back to consistent topline growth.
“The plan is designed to streamline the company, allow us to move faster, and free up resources to invest in our brands and capabilities. As promised in October, we’ve wasted no time in implementing the plan.”
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