Firmenich International SA has announced its half year results for the six months ended December 31, 2020.
Total revenue for the second half of 2020 reached CHF 1,997 million, up 2.3% on an organic basis at constant currency. Including acquisitions, total revenue increased 14.0% year-over-year at constant currency. On a reported basis, total revenue increased 4.9% year-over-year.
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Adjusted EBITDA for the period was CHF 367 million, up 1.6% year-over-year on an organic basis at constant currency, and down -12.4% year-over-year on a reported basis.
An adjusted EBITDA margin of 18.4% was recorded. On an organic basis at constant currency, adjusted EBITDA margin remained stable year-over-year. On a reported basis, adjusted EBITDA margin decreased by 360 basis points due to the negative impact of foreign exchange and the impact of the pandemic on the company’s acquisitions.
Free cash flow was up 20.7% year-over-year totaling CHF 182 million. EBITDA to free cash flow conversion ratio was 50%, an increase of 13 percentage points from 37% in H1 2020.
The company demonstrated sustained organic revenue growth across taste and beyond and perfumery and ingredients divisions, despite the global COVID-19 pandemic, delivering double-digit revenue growth in key geographies, such as China +15.1%, North America +12.8% and India +11.4%, on an organic basis at constant currency.
Firmenich is in the process of integrating DRT to build an innovation platform for renewable, biodegradable and sustainable ingredients. The pandemic had a material impact on revenue and profit during the first half of the year.
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“Firmenich continued to perform strongly across its business in the first half of fiscal year 2021,” said Patrick Firmenich, chairman of the board. “I would like to warmly thank all of our 10,000 colleagues around the world for their tremendous resilience and agility. For more than 125 years, our people have been the bedrock of our success. Together, we have weathered many major global crises, and I am confident we will once more emerge stronger from these testing times.”
“Firmenich delivered a solid performance in the past six months, underpinned by sustained organic growth, despite new peaks in the pandemic,” said Gilbert Ghostine, CEO of Firmenich. “In a challenging environment, I am pleased that we demonstrated again the strength of our business, growing at double-digit rates in key markets such as China, North America and India. Thanks to the dedication of our colleagues, we maintained the highest level of service for our customers, supplying the global food chain and essential home and personal care products. I firmly believe that we are well positioned to capture the opportunities that will arise after this public health crisis.”
