A raft of companies report to the market next week, including UK-based food group Associated British Foods, which is set to unveil its half-year results. Data for the first quarter of 2013 will continue to come in, with Unilever, Hershey and Premier Foods plc among those set to publish numbers. Here is a flavour of what to watch out for next week.
Tuesday 23 April
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Associated British Foods is scheduled to reports its H1 numbers. Profits from ABF’s grocery business are expected to rise, with the numbers last year including restructuring costs. Analysts will also be looking for an update on ABF’s sugar business, which some see reporting lower earnings this year.
UK group Premier Foods provides an update on its trading in the first three months of the year on Tuesday. The announcement will be the first set of results data since CEO Gavin Darby took charge of the Hovis group in January after Michael Clarke’s surprise departure.
South African retailer Pick n Pay is set to publish its full-year results on 23 April. Earlier this month, Pick n Pay warned its annual profits would be lower year-on-year. The retailer, which is now led by Richard Brasher, the former boss of Tesco‘s UK business, forecast underlying earnings per share would fall by 25-35%.
Wednesday 24 April
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By GlobalDataSupervalu Inc, the US retailer that is looking to the future after selling off five chains earlier this year, reports its annual results on Wednesday. Wall Street will want to hear how new president and CEO Sam Duncan, a former chief executive of office supplies retailer OfficeMax, plans to take the slimmed-down grocery retailer forward.
Thursday 25 April
After this week’s Q1 announcements from Nestle and Danone, European analysts will hear from the third of the titans in the region, Unilever. The consumer goods giant is lapping last year’s Q1, in which sales were up 8% but some still expect the Knorr maker to post solid sales figures. After the scrutiny of Nestle’s performance in emerging markets, analysts will wait to hear how Unilever is faring in markets like Asia and Africa.
Hershey is also set to report its first-quarter results on Thursday. The US confectionery giant had a solid 2012, with profits up 5%. Janney Montgomery Scott Jonathan Feeney this week raised his forecast for Hershey’s Q1 earnings per share on “strong Easter season data”.
Singapore-based food group Olam International also plans to publish the results of its strategic review on Thursday. The company is expected to reveal how it plans to hit US$1bn in profits by fiscal 2016. The review will also be closely watched after Olam’s spat with investment firm Muddy Waters and its founder Carson Block this year.
Other notable results next week will include Q1s from Russia’s new largest food retailer Magnit, from US infant formula group Mead Johnson and from US retail giant Safeway Inc. In Canada, retailer Metro Inc is set to publish its half-year numbers.
