Category: Financial

  • Nicotine Pouch Sales Rising at Haypp Group

    Nicotine Pouch Sales Rising at Haypp Group

    Photo: Haypp Group

    The Haypp Group, the world’s largest online retailer of nicotine pouches, reported net sales of SEK942.8 million ($89.66 million) for the second quarter of 2024, up 23 percent over the comparable 2023 period.

    Gross profit increased to SEK135.2 million, corresponding to a gross margin of 14.3 percent. Adjusted earnings before interest and taxes rose to SEK34.4 million, mainly due to the higher gross margin, increased volume as well as efficiency gains, partially offset by continued investments into additional capabilities.

    The company’s nicotine pouch volume grew by 43 percent over the second quarter of 2023.

    “Haypp group continued to show a very strong performance in the second quarter with YoY Nicotine Pouch volume growth of 43 percent,” said Haypp Group CEO Gavin O’Dowd in a statement.

    “This is accelerating from prior quarters as the category continues to thrive in our growth markets due to the increasing appetite for risk reduced products. While the category experienced some turbulence in the USA during the quarter, we were well positioned and our volume grew around 70 percent. The investments in our business operations have continued to deliver value with an increase of 68 percent in our adjusted EBIT. This robust growth, over many years shows how robust our business is, irrespective of the economic environment.”

    The Haypp Group’s interim report is available here.

  • Discount Brands Boost Revenue, Income at Vector

    Discount Brands Boost Revenue, Income at Vector

    Photo: Mind and I

    Vector Group reported consolidated revenues of $371.9 million for the second-quarter of 2024 financial results, up 1.7 percent compared to the prior-year period.

    Tobacco segment wholesale market share increased to 5.7 percent from 5.4 percent in the prior-year period, and retail market share remained at 5.8 percent, unchanged from the prior-year period.

    Montego wholesale and retail market share both increased to 4.1 percent from 3.4 percent and 3.5 percent, respectively, in the prior-year period.

    Operating income was $97.8 million, up 36.5 percent, or $26.1 million, compared to the prior-year period.

    Tobacco segment operating income was $102.9 million, up 37 percent, or $27.8 million, compared to the prior-year period.

    Adjusted EBITDA was $103.3 million, up 9.7 percent, or $9.2 million, compared to the prior-year period.

    Tobacco adjusted EBITDA was $104.4 million, up 10.2 percent, or $9.7 million, compared to the prior-year period.

    “Vector Group delivered strong performance in the second quarter, bolstered by the impressive growth of our Montego brand,” said Vector Group President and CEO Howard M. Lorber in a statement.

    “Montego’s continued expansion as the largest discount brand in the U.S. highlights the effectiveness of our strategic approach, expert market analysis and proven execution. We are confident in our ability to sustain our momentum in the second half of the year and to drive long-term value for our stockholders.”

  • Quarterly Revenue and Profit up at Japan Tobacco

    Quarterly Revenue and Profit up at Japan Tobacco

    The JT Group reported revenue of ¥1.6 trillion ($10.63 billion) for the second quarter of 2024, up 12.7 percent over the comparable 2023 period. Profit increased by 6.3 percent to ¥305.2 billion.

    “The JT Group posted another strong set of results for the first half, driven by continued market share gains and solid pricing in the tobacco business,” said President and CEO Masamichi Terabatake in a statement.

    “Total volume increased by 2 percent year-on-year, with combustibles growing 1.7 percent and RRP [reduced risk products] up by a strong 25.5 percent. RRP volume was mainly driven by Ploom in the HTS segment, our investment priority, resulting in RRP-related revenue increasing by approximately 29 percent year-on-year.

    “In the Japanese market, Ploom volume increased approximately 36 percent year-on-year, growing at a faster pace than total HTS demand in the market. Additionally, the geo-expansion of Ploom has now reached 21 markets, with sales volumes in markets outside Japan also steadily increasing.

    “For the full-year performance forecast, we have revised our adjusted operating profit at constant FX [foreign exchange rates] upward, reflecting the positive momentum in the first half. On a reported basis, we have also revised our forecast upward, considering the continued impact of the current positive foreign exchange trend.”

  • Turning Point Announces Second Quarter Results

    Turning Point Announces Second Quarter Results

    Photo: David

    Turning Point Brands (TPB) announced financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2024.

    Total consolidated net sales increased 2.8 percent to $108.5 million compared to the previous year period. Zig-Zag product net sales increased 8 percent. Stoker’s product net sales increased 18.5 percent. Creative Distribution Solutions (CDS) net sales decreased 33 percent. Gross profit increased 2.6 percent to $53.8 million. Net income increased 31 percent to $13 million. Adjusted net income increased 12.2 percent to $17.2 million. Adjusted EBITDA increased 6.9 percent to $27 million.

    “We were pleased by our second-quarter results,” said President and CEO Graham Purdy in a statement. “We achieved our highest quarterly EBITDA since the second quarter of 2021. We believe Zig-Zag is on a sustainable growth trajectory, and Stoker’s MST continues to grow market share. In addition, sales of FRE, our modern oral nicotine pouch, grew 76 percent sequentially as we continue to expand our national footprint.”

    The company is increasing its previous full-year 2024 adjusted EBITDA guidance from $95 to $100 million to $98 to $102 million, which excludes CDS.

    For the second quarter, CDS net sales were $15.3 million, gross profit was $3.4 million and gross margin was 22.5 percent.

  • BAT Reports First-Half Results, Revenues Down

    BAT Reports First-Half Results, Revenues Down

    Photo: BAT

    British American Tobacco reported revenue of £12.34 billion ($15.88 billion) for the first half of 2024, down 8.2 percent from the comparable 2023 period. The decline was driven by unfavorable currency exchange rates and the sale of BAT’s businesses in Russia and Belarus following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

    Reported revenue from new category products, which include vapes, heated tobacco and nicotine pouches, declined 0.4 percent to £1.65 billion. Smokeless brands now account for 17.9 percent of BAT’s group revenue, up 1.4. percentage points from fiscal year 2023

    Profit from operations was £4.26 billion on a reported basis, down 28.3 percent from the first half of 2023. BAT attributed the decline to its December 2023 decision to write down the value of some of its traditional cigarette brands in the United States to reflect the diminishing outlook for combustible tobacco products, along with its exit from Russia and Belarus.

    The company said it’s unlikely to hit its £5 billion revenue target in 2025 for new category products, blaming fierce competition from illicit vapes in the United States. The U.S. accounted for more than 40 percent of BAT’s revenues in 2023, primarily from traditional tobacco products, according to Reuters.

    Tadeu Marroco

    In a statement, BAT CEO Tadeu Marroco welcomed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s recent marketing authorization of its Vuse Alto device and tobacco flavor consumables, but expressed concern about the continued lack of enforcement against unauthorized single-use vapes, which makes it difficult for authorized brands to compete in that market.

    Nonetheless, Marroco said BAT is on track to deliver its full-year guidance. “Focusing on ‘quality growth’ is delivering better returns on more targeted investments across all three new categories,” he said. “In H1 2024, we increased organic new category contribution by £165 million—at constant rates—and I am particularly pleased with the growth of modern oral. We expect to deliver further improvement in revenue and profitability across our new categories for the full year.”

  • Vapes, Modern Oral Product Sales Boost PMI Income

    Vapes, Modern Oral Product Sales Boost PMI Income

    Photo: PMI

    Philip Morris International’s operating income jumped 34.2 percent to $3.44 billion for the quarter that ended June 30. On an adjusted basis, operating income rose 3.5 percent to $3.66 billion. Net revenues were $9.47 billion, compared with $8.97 billion in the comparable 2023 quarter.

    During the quarter, PMI shipped 157.6 billion cigarettes, 35.5 billion heated tobacco units and 4.2 billion oral smoke-free products, a category that excludes snuff, snuff leaf and U.S. chewing tobacco.

    The smoke-free business accounted for 38.1 percent of PMI’s total quarterly revenues, up 2.7 percentage points from the comparable 2023 period. Oral smoke free products experienced the largest volume gains, growing by 20 percent from second quarter last year.

    This growth was driven by primarily the popularity of Zyn nicotine pouches in the U.S., where shipments reached 135.1 million cans, representing growth of 50.3 percent versus the prior-year quarter. The company expect Zyn sales to reach 580 million cans in 2024.

    Scrambling to fulfill ferocious U.S. demand for Zyn, PMI recently announced a $600 million investment in a new nicotine pouch factory in Aurora, Colorado.

    Quarterly heated tobacco product sales were strong in Japan, following an expansion of the IQOS product range, as well as Greece, Hungary and Spain. In Japan, Philip Morris grew its market share for heated tobacco by more than 3 percentage points to more than 29  percent.

    The company will begin a trial of IQOS in Austin, Texas, USA, in the fourth quarter of this year, according to Chief Financial Officer Emmanuel Babeau.

    “The excellent momentum of our smoke-free business continued with an outstanding second-quarter and first-half performance,” said PMI CEO Jacek Olczak in a statement.

    “The powerful combination of excellent underlying performance and proactive measures across all categories enabled our business to outperform once again, and we are on track for a strong 2024. As a result, we are raising our full-year guidance, despite currency headwinds.”

  • BAT Asks Investors to Expect Lower First-Half Profit

    BAT Asks Investors to Expect Lower First-Half Profit

    Photo: BAT

    Declining sales of cigarettes and growing competition from illegal vapes in the U.S. will likely dent British American Tobacco’s 2024 earnings, the tobacco manufacturer said in a pre-close trading update on June 4.

    Analysts estimate BAT will make £27.60 billion ($35.35 billion) in total organic revenue and adjusted operating profit of £12.48 billion for the year, according to The Wall Street Journal.

    BAT noted that while the U.S. was showing some early signs of recovery, traditional cigarette volumes were down around 9 percent so far this year across the industry.

    Chris Beckett, head of equity research at Quilter Cheviot, told Reuters BAT’s anticipated decline in first-half revenue and profit was “more pronounced” than expected.

    The company expects half-year revenue and adjusted profit from operations to fall by low single digits, but says it is on track to deliver its guidance for the full year.

    “We expect our performance to be second-half weighted, mainly driven by wholesaler inventory movements related to continued investment in our U.S. commercial actions, as well as the phasing of new launches,” said BAT CEO Tadeu Marroco.

    “Our guidance also reflects ongoing macro-economic pressures, particularly in the U.S. market and continued lack of effective enforcement against the growing illicit vapor segment. As a result, we expect our H1 revenue and adjusted profit from operations to be down by low-single digits on an organic, constant currency basis.”

  • RLX Technology Sees Boost in Revenue and Income

    RLX Technology Sees Boost in Revenue and Income

    Photo: RLX Technology

    RLX Technology reported net revenues of RMB551.6 million ($76.4 million) in the first quarter of 2024, up from RMB188.9 million in the same period of 2023. Gross margin was 25.9 percent, compared with 24.2 percent in the 2023 period. U.S. GAAP net income reached RMB132.6 million, compared with U.S. GAAP net loss of RMB56.3 million in the same period of 2023.

    “We started 2024 with a steady first quarter,” said Ying (Kate) Wang, co-founder, chairperson and CEO of RLX Technology in a statement. “Our international business is developing positively as we refine our regional strategies. Despite challenges posed by regulatory changes across various regions, we continue to identify opportunities and leverage our core strengths to prudently enter potential markets.

    “Domestically, we are encouraged by the positive impact of China’s recent regulatory crackdown on illegal products, but much progress remains to be made. We remain committed to collaborating with regulators and advocating for a well-regulated and healthy e-vapor industry. As a trusted e-vapor brand for adult smokers, we are dedicated to optimizing our product portfolio with premium, compliant, and innovative products that meet our users’ needs and drive growth in this evolving industry.”

    The first quarter marked RLX Technology’s fifth consecutive quarter of sequential revenue growth, according to Chief Financial Officer Chao Lu. “With our resilient business model, effective regional strategies, and consistent strong execution, we are confident of sustaining this growth trajectory and delivering sustainable value to our stakeholders,” he said.

    ADS[2] were RMB0.166 (US$0.023) and RMB0.159 (US$0.022), respectively, in the first quarter of 2024, compared with non-GAAP basic and diluted net income per ADS of RMB0.139 and RMB0.136, respectively, in the same period of 2023.

  • Altria Wants FDA to Crack Down on Illegal Vapes

    Altria Wants FDA to Crack Down on Illegal Vapes

    Altria sign
    Vapor Voice archives

    Altria Group Inc. is calling on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to do more to crack down on unauthorized vaping products that compete with its own authorized products produced by Njoy.

    “We believe the FDA’s enforcement approach is not of the scale or scope needed to bring about fundamental change in the marketplace,” Altria CEO Billy Gifford said on the company’s first-quarter earnings call.

    He described the proliferation of e-cigarettes that the agency hasn’t authorized as a “threat to public health.”

    Altria’s reported revenue fell 2.5 percent year-over-year to $5.58 billion. The drop was primarily driven by lower net revenues in the smokeable products segment, partially offset by higher revenue in the oral tobacco products segment and all other categories, according to media reports.

    Altria’s (MO) revenue net of excise taxes decreased 1.0 percent to $4.7 billion. Adjusted diluted EPS decreased 2.5% to $1.15 to match the consensus expectation, primarily driven by lower adjusted OCI, partially offset by fewer shares outstanding.

    “In spite of the absence of an effective regulatory environment, we saw continued early momentum from NJOY and believe our businesses are on track to deliver against full-year plans,” said Gifford. “We also demonstrated our continued commitment to maximizing the return on our investments and delivering strong shareholder returns through the sale of a portion of our investment in ABI and the subsequent expansion of our share repurchase program in March.”

  • Smoore Quarterly Pretax Profits Up a Quarter

    Smoore Quarterly Pretax Profits Up a Quarter

    Photo: Taco Tuinstra

    Smoore International Holdings reported an unaudited pretax profit of RMB399.7 million ($55.23 million) for the three months that ended March 31, up 25 percent over its pretax profit in the comparable 2023 quarter. After-tax profit was up 12.8 percent to RMB339.5 in the quarter.

    “Total comprehensive income” was RMB209.8 million in the quarter, compared with RMB293.3 million in the comparable 2023 period.