MADRID, 16 Feb. (EUROPA PRESS) -
The Swiss food giant Nestlé obtained an attributable net profit of 9,270 million Swiss francs (9,377 million euros) in 2022, which represents a decline of 45.2% compared to the result recorded the previous year, as reported by the multinational.
Nestlé's sales in the whole of last year totaled 94,424 million Swiss francs (95,510 million euros), 8.4% above the revenue registered in 2021. In organic terms, revenue growth was 8, 3%, including an 8.2% rise in prices.
The company's sales in North America increased by 11.1% annually, to 26,328 million Swiss francs (26,631 million euros), while in Europe they grew by 1.8%, to 19,128 million Swiss francs (19,348 million euros). and in Asia and Oceania 3.3%, up to 18,484 million francs (18,697 million euros).
In the case of Latin America, Nestlé's sales in 2022 increased by 17.2%, to 11,819 million francs (11,955 million euros) and 3.4% in China, to 5,351 million francs (5,412 million euros). .
On its side, Nespresso sales in 2022 totaled 6,448 million Swiss francs (6,522 million euros), 0.5% more than in the previous year and the Health Science business increased by 36.9% in sales. income, up to 6,602 million francs (6,678 million euros).
As for the costs of the multinational, those related to products increased by 13.8%, to 51,745 million francs (52,341 million euros), while distribution costs rose by 5.9%, to 8,386 million francs (8,482 million euros), but marketing fell 2.6%, to 16,850 million francs (17,044 million euros).
Nestlé's board of directors has proposed the distribution of a dividend of 2.95 Swiss francs per share, an increase of 15 cents, which extends the growth of the multinational's dividends to 28 consecutive years.
In total, the company has returned 18.2 billion francs (18.409 million euros) to shareholders in 2022 through a combination of dividends and share buybacks.
"The past year brought many challenges and difficult decisions for families, communities and businesses. Inflation rose to unprecedented levels, cost of living pressures intensified and the effects of geopolitical tensions were felt around the world." said Mark Schneider, CEO of Nestle.
Looking ahead to 2023, the multinational forecasts organic sales growth between 6% and 8% and an underlying operating profit margin between 17% and 17.5%, while underlying earnings per share in constant currency will increase between 6% and 10%.
Furthermore, Nestlé has affirmed the 2025 targets of sustainable mid-single-digit organic sales growth and a return to an underlying operating profit margin range of 17.5% to 18.5% by 2025. Underlying earnings per share annual growth will be between 6% and 10% in constant currency.
