Fraser and Neave (F&N) has reported earnings of $81.6 million for the 1HFY2026 ended March 31, 2.9% lower y-o-y.
Earnings per share (EPS) before exceptional items dipped to 5.6 cents on a fully diluted basis, compared to 5.8 cents in the 1HFY2025.
Revenue fell by 6.4% y-o-y to $1.14 billion as beverages and dairies revenue fell. Beverages revenue was down by 12.2% y-o-y to $376.9 million mainly from an adverse currency impact of $65.8 million for the group’s beer operations in Myanmar after the adoption of the Singapore Financial Reporting Standards (International) or SFRS(I) 1-21. Excluding the foreign exchange (forex) impact, beverages revenue would have increased by 3.1% driven by price increases for beer and better volumes for soft drinks sales.
The performance for soft drinks was thanks to strong festive demand for 100Plus, the introduction of new products and higher water volumes from Ice Mountain.
Dairies revenue fell by 4% y-o-y to $617.8 million mainly due to lower export sales from Thailand to Cambodia on the back of anti-Thai sentiment. The decline was also attributable to lower domestic sales in Thailand due to weaker consumer sentiment. The decline was partly mitigated by increased sales in Malaysia in Singapore supported by higher domestic sales from distribution expansion and stronger contributions from the school milk programme in Malaysia.
Printing and publishing (P&P) revenue rose by 2.3% y-o-y to $98.1 million driven mainly by stronger performance in the Education segment. The segment saw higher annual orders due to improved adoption rates and increased export sales in Singapore. Printing revenue also rose y-o-y thanks to higher sales from packaging print; growth was mainly driven by “robust demand” for Kraft paper bags in the US. Distribution sales also improved y-o-y underpinned by a healthy sales channel performance and enhanced trading efficiency.
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Gross profit inched up by 0.5% y-o-y to $378.6 million while overall profit before interest and taxation (PBIT) was up by 5.8% y-o-y to $174.8 million.
PBIT for the beverages segment rose due to higher margins from the beer segment, offseting cost pressures and forex. Dairies PBIT fell largely from lower contributions from Malaysia and Thailand. Earnings from Malaysia were affected by a less favourable sales mix from lower export contributions due to unfavourable forex movements, country mix and higher supply chain costs. The performance in Thailand was due to lower sales and unfavourable forex. The decline in Malaysia and Thailand was partly offset by a 42% increase in contributions from F&N’s associate, Vietnam Dairy Products Joint Stock Company, with share of profit increasing to $51.2 million from $36 million the year before. The increase is due to better performance from Vinamik and the increase in F&N’s stake to 24.99% from 20.39% in December 2025.
P&P saw narrower losses mainly due to higher sales and a leaner cost structure in print, which was supported by improved profitability from the group’s growing sustainable packaging business.
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For the period, F&N has declared an interim dividend of 1.5 cents per share, unchanged y-o-y. The dividend will be paid on June 5.
As at March 31, cash and cash equivalents stood at $334.7 million.
F&N’s CEO Rahul Colaco says the group’s underlying business remains “sound” with despite the “progressively more challenging” market conditions in the first half of 1HFY2026.
There is “continued momentum in key growth areas, including our P&P segment where we are seeing encouraging traction in Education and sustainable packaging,” he adds.
“During the period, we advanced our innovation agenda across the region, introducing new products to expand consumption occasions and respond to evolving consumer preferences. We have also taken a measured step to expand our presence into the wellness space through our proposed investment in Comvita Limited, which provides a platform to participate in the growth of premium natural health products,” he continues. “These initiatives support our continued focus on developing health and wellness offerings across our core brands.”
Shares in F&N closed 2 cents higher or 1.4% up at $1.45 on May 5.
