Q4 2024 Axfood AB Earnings Call Transcript
Key Points
- Axfood AB (STU:AXL1) reported a strong operational development in 2024, with increased customer traffic, loyalty, and volume growth.
- The company successfully acquired City Gross, enhancing its market presence and expanding its reach in the hypermarket segment.
- Axfood AB (STU:AXL1) achieved a 14% increase in retail sales in the fourth quarter, significantly outperforming the market growth rate.
- E-commerce sales grew by over 7% in the quarter, with a strong presence in this channel, surpassing market penetration.
- The company made substantial progress in sustainability, reducing its carbon footprint by over 30% in its transport operations compared to the previous year.
- Axfood AB (STU:AXL1) faced pressure on its gross margin due to intense competition and high-cost inflation, particularly in personnel and rent.
- The acquisition of City Gross resulted in a negative operating profit of SEK40 million, with challenges in achieving profitability expected until the second half of 2026.
- The company's net debt increased significantly due to the acquisition of City Gross and higher leasehold debt, impacting its financial position.
- Operating profit was affected by items of minus SEK143 million related to the reevaluation of the minority stake in City Gross.
- Cash flow from operating activities was lower compared to the previous year, mainly due to negative calendar effects in net working capital.
Good morning. This is the Axfood year-end report 2024 telephone conference. And with me today are Simone Margulies, President and CEO; and Anders Lexmon, CFO. My name is Alexander Bergendorf, and I'm the Head of Investor Relations at Axfood. In the Investors section of our axfood.com website, you will find the presentation material for today's call.
We encourage you to have that presentation at hand as you listen to our prepared commentary. After the presentation, we will be taking questions. A recording of this call will be made available on our website. With that, I will now hand over the words to Simone. So please go to Page 2.
And please go ahead, Simone.
Thank you, Alex, and good morning, everyone. 2024 was an eventful year for Axfood, a year with continued strong operational development. For us, what really drives long-term growth and profitability in food retail is customer traffic, loyalty, and volume growth.
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