Kerry Group plc reported earnings of €1.165bn for 2023, a drop of more than 4.2% from a year earlier.

Revenue was 8.6% lower at €8.02bn, with the company saying this was driven by the unfavourable impact of disposals and foreign currency movements in the year.

By business sector, Taste and Nutrition grew revenue by 1.1% to €6.98bn and Dairy Ireland saw revenue drop to €1.28bn.

At Dairy Ireland, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), dropped to €53m from €71m in 2022. Kerry said the drop was due to significant changes in dairy market conditions.

Challenging conditions

There was a drop in volume of 6.5%, which the company said reflected challenging market conditions and supply, which dropped 7.5% in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Chief executive officer Edmond Scanlon said: “Dairy Ireland performance reflected challenging market conditions across the year.”

During a call with analysts after the earnings release, he said that those market conditions have now stabilised and that he expects earnings for 2024 to be in the €60m-plus range.

He said that Kerry “will continue to selectively invest in Kerry Dairy Ireland, but, as we have said before, we are open-minded as to the best way to create shareholder value”.

A final dividend for the year of 80.8c was announced, bringing the total payment per share for the year to 115.4c.

Kerry announced that once the current €300m buyback programme ends in April, it will launch another one. The company gave no details of the size or duration of that programme.

Investors’ initial reaction to the results was negative, with shares in the company dropping 6% to €77.00 at the start of stock market trading before recovering to trade 3.5% lower at €78.84.