Sentiment Analysis of the earnings transcript to help figure out if there are any bullish or bearish sentiments that could be gathered from it. We're doing ML and AI based analysis on the earnings call to get some more insights.
Please consider a small donation if you think this website provides you with relevant information
| Statement |
|---|
| It's a fantastic company, well run, well managed, a very fast growing company in a very fast growing market with the most populous country in the world and contributing accretive for BAT in terms of earnings, also in terms of cash because they have a very good policy in terms of dividend payout, and the share price actually has doubled in the last three years |
| And on top of that, like I mentioned during the presentation, we are increasing our trade reps and all that has a positive consequence in the market |
| The breadth and scale of our global footprint, enables us to consistently deliver balanced results |
| This is demonstrated by our strong performances in AME and APMEA, delivering combined double-digit revenue growth offsetting the U.S |
| Our adjusted profit from operations growth will be enabled by increasing scale benefits driving New Category contribution margin, and Combustibles cost efficiencies driving positive operational leverage |
| I am confident in the progression of our financial performance |
| I am particularly pleased with our performance in new categories, with revenue up nearly 18%, and 21% organically, with Vuse and Velo delivering strong volume led revenue growth |
| To close, while there is still more to do, I'm confident the investment choice we are taking will take a sharp execution and build the foundation for long-term growth and value creation |
| Over the last six months, working together with our broader teams, we have made good progress across these six areas of focus |
| First, I am delighted that we have reached new category profitability two years ahead of our original target |
| But more important, when we consider the level of cannibalization that we have and more importantly, retention of consumers, we think that is a very positive move and that's why we have pilots, we have taken our conclusions and then we start to roll out throughout 2024 |
| Our new categories are meaningfully contributing to group results, as we benefit from increased scale, with strong profitability gains driven by Vuse and Velo |
| We have sequentially improved our new category contribution from a peak loss of £1.1 billion in 2020, to a small profit position in 2023, reflecting a £400 million improvement last year |
| There is an exciting opportunity ahead with growing nicotine industry value driven by New Categories |
| We made strong progress in our top 10 new category markets, which generated about three quarters of our new category revenue in 2023, with category contribution margin now above 20% |
| The performance of these markets demonstrates that revenue continues to grow at pace |
| Gross and contribution margins are expanding strongly with scale; and absolute margin levels are moving closer to the level of our Combustibles business |
| And we are now seeing the evidence that our multi-category strategy will deliver long-term profitable growth |
| We are committed to rewarding shareholders throughout our transformation, driven by enhanced financial flexibility, disciplined capital allocation and strong shareholder returns |
| As a result, the quality of our top-line growth will be much improved as it will be volume driven |
| And why it's going to deliver strong outcomes for our shareholders |
| So we have built over time, a very strong Vapour business in the U.S |
| In addition, we are delivering value share gains, up 20 basis points since January driven by a 60 basis point increase in our premium share, to reach our highest level in three years, driven by Newport and Natural American Spirit |
| that we have built and we are very proud of the efforts |
| Beyond 2024, we expect to progressively improve our delivery to 3% to 5% organic revenue growth, and mid-single digit profit from operations growth on an organic basis, and at constant rate by 2026 |
| The early signs are very positive on that space |
| We are confident that these actions will further strengthen our portfolio over the medium to long-term |
| This performance clearly reflects the strength of our multi-category portfolio, driven by Vuse and Velo |
| Our recently announced global patent settlement is an important step forward, allow us to further develop improved products and innovations in the Heated Products space over the medium term |
| Meanwhile, I am excited about our newest hyper launch, which delivers a total system upgrade |
| Statement |
|---|
| In the U.S., total revenue was down more than 4%, driven by continued macro-economic pressures and the impact of illicit single-use vapes |
| industry volume and share loss due to our premium position and the impact of significant excise increases in Pakistan |
| In Modern Oral, Velo revenue declined driven by lower volume |
| Given this macro environment, the premium segment has remained under pressure through 2023 |
| Beyond market secular decline, industry volume was mostly impacted by a combination of macro-economic headwinds and the growth of illicit single-use vapes |
| So clearly, you have a stabilized share and the share is growing, well, it is coming at the expense of pricing and there is a concern that what you are doing could lead to the breakdown of pricing discipline in the U.S |
| And then on top of that, we have this whole process has been exacerbated by the conflict that start between Russia, Ukraine and the inflation that came at the back of that as well and with a lot of a pressure on consumer purchasing power |
| But overall, the category does still remain under a bit of pressure and we're seeing larger volume declines than has been the case historically |
| We anticipate currency translation to be a 3% headwind on full-year adjusted profit from operations growth |
| Our cigarette volume declined by 5.3% on an organic basis |
| Adjusted for markets exited during the year and our volume declined 4.6% compared to an industry decline of 3.4% |
| Combustibles industry and change in consumption patterns post COVID, combined with the growth of illicit single-use Vapour products and uncertainty around the potential menthol ban |
| Combustible industry volume was down 7.5%, or 8.6% on a sales-to-retail basis, excluding inventory movements |
| We are deeply concerned by the continued proliferation of illicit single-use Vapour products in the U.S., which we estimate represent over 60% of the Vapour market |
| On top of the industry contributors, our volume performance was impacted by lower volume share, as a result of our more premium skewed portfolio, and the California flavour ban |
| For sure that we are frustrated with the fact that there is no current level playing field in the U.S |
| and losses in APMEA, while we held share in AME |
| Group value share was down 40 basis points, reflecting the impact of our commercial plans in the U.S |
| We still see a lot of a pressure on consumer purchasing power coming from high levels of debt |
| As a result, our Combustible volumes declined 11.3% in the U.S |
Please consider a small donation if you think this website provides you with relevant information