Mr Kipling owner Premier Foods has raised its profit guidance for the full year to £125m as Q3 trading is “ahead of expectations”.
The owner of popular household FMCG brands including Cadbury’s, Mr Kipling, Sharwoods and Oxo revealed that sales rose by 7% year-on-year for the three-month period ending 1 January 2022.
Trading profit for this financial year has been revised following Mr Kipling’s “biggest ever” Christmas and is now expected to be at least £145m (with EBITDA of at least £125m).
The FMCG giant was particularly pleased with the performance of its Sweet Treats business, with the brand growing 6.3% compared to last year and 11.6% compared to two years ago. 2021 was Mr Kipling’s “biggest Christmas ever”, thanks to “an increased number of family gatherings over the festive period”.
Read more: Premier Foods reports sales fall
“The strong momentum from the first half of the year continued into the key Q3 trading period, with our brands growing by 11.3% compared to two years ago,” said chief executive officer Alex Whitehouse.
“With three strong quarters of trading now delivered and taking good momentum into the final quarter, we are increasing our profit expectations for this financial year.”
Whitehouse added: “This performance continues to underline the popularity of our brands but also demonstrates the strength of our established branded growth model, with many of our brands supported by advertising campaigns and new product innovation during the quarter,” he added.
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