MEXICO CITY — Strong performance in grain-based foods categories besides bread helped drive earnings and sales gains within the North American business of Grupo Bimbo S.A.B. de C.V. in fiscal 2016.
Operating income of the North American business of Grupo Bimbo S.A.B. de C.V. was 7,161 million pesos ($363 million) in the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2016, up 43% from 5,024 million pesos in fiscal 2015. Sales were 135,219 million pesos ($6,860 million), up 16% from 116,399 million pesos.
“Performance in the frozen, snacks and sweet baked goods categories, as well as growth in strategic brands, helped offset the overall challenges in bread consumption,” Bimbo said. “Artisanal products performed well in Canada, as did bread alternatives such as bagels, English muffins and tortillas.”
For the fourth quarter, operating income was 1,506 million pesos ($76 million), up from 1,356 million pesos in the same period a year ago. Fourth-quarter sales were 36,965 million pesos, up 13% from 32,796 million pesos.
Operating margins in North America were 5.3% in fiscal 2016, up from 4.3% in the same period last year. For the fourth quarter, the margin was 4.1%, unchanged from the last quarter of 2015.
In Mexico, operating profit for the year totaled 12,949 million pesos ($654.6 million), up 19% from 10,920 million pesos in 2015. For the fourth quarter, operating profit was 3,918 million pesos, up from 2,589 million in the same period a year ago.
Net sales in Mexico in 2016 totaled 82,386 million pesos ($4,164 million), up 8% from 76,295 million pesos in fiscal 2015. For the fourth quarter, net sales were 21,670 million pesos, which compared with 19,692 million in the same period a year ago.
Net majority income of Grupo Bimbo in 2016 was 5,899 million pesos ($298.8 million), up 14% from 5,172 million in 2015. In the fourth quarter, net majority income was 86 million pesos, which compared with 301 million in the same period a year ago.
Consolidated sales in 2016 were 252,141 million pesos ($12,750.9 million), up 15% from 219,186 million pesos in fiscal 2015. For the fourth quarter, sales increased 16% to 68,862 million pesos from 59,519 million.
Total Grupo Bimbo debt as of Dec. 31 was 82.5 billion pesos ($4.2 billion), versus 67.8 billion on Dec. 31, 2015.
“The 22% increase was primarily due to a 20% U.S. dollar revaluation that increased the Mexican peso value of U.S. dollar-denominated debt,” the company said.
