TreeHouse posts positive third quarter results
TreeHouse Foods reported strong growth in its snacks and beverages categories for the third quarter, as well as in its pasta and red sauces offerings. Building on its pasta category, the company also announced it would be acquiring the majority of pasta brands from Riviana Foods, a subsidiary of Ebro.
Steve Oakland, president and CEO of TreeHouse Foods, said the snacks and beverages division posted year-over-year organic topline improvement of 5.2%, driven by items in powdered beverages, crackers and broth.
“Within the meal preparation business, the food-away-from-home channel continues to be challenged by the continuing impact of the COVID-19 crisis, while strong performance in categories like pasta and red sauces is driving profitability and generating cash,” he said. “Separately, we announced our intent to acquire the majority of Ebro's U.S. branded pasta business, which represents a wonderful opportunity to deepen our portfolio, enhance our scale, improve our margins and strengthen our ability to serve our national and regional customers."
TreeHouse, Oak Brook, Ill., also reported third-quarter GAAP earnings per diluted share from continuing operations of $0.20 compared to a loss of $(1.08) for the third quarter of 2019.
"I'm proud of the effort our teams are putting forth during such a challenging time. This is reflected in the strength of our profitability, with third-quarter adjusted EPS of $0.71, which outperformed our expectations," said Bill Kelley, EVP and chief financial officer. "Adjusted gross profit of 19.7%, expanded 160 basis points versus the prior year, as we capitalized on the strong fixed cost leverage we have in our business model and realized the benefits of higher volume. We remain focused on improving our topline performance, and delivered third-quarter revenue of $1.05 billion, which was within our guidance range and represents 0.7% growth on an organic basis."