Grainnet

Minneapolic, MN—General Mills (NYSE: GIS) reported July 1 strong financial results for the fourth quarter and full 2009 fiscal year.

Full General Mills Report

For the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009, General Mills net sales grew 8 percent to $14.7 billion.

Volume (measured in pounds) contributed 2 points of sales growth.

Foreign currency translation reduced sales growth by 2 percentage points. Gross margin essentially matched prior-year levels despite 9 percent inflation in the company’s input costs.

Consumer marketing investment rose 16 percent in 2009, including strong growth in worldwide media spending.

Segment operating profit increased 10 percent to exceed $2.6 billion. During 2009, the company incurred restructuring expenses totaling $42 million pre-tax, and recorded a net pre-tax gain of $85 million from divestitures.

Net earnings grew 1 percent to $1.3 billion including a net decline in mark-to-market valuation of certain commodity positions, the net gain from divestitures, proceeds from an insurance recovery, and expense associated with a discrete tax item.

Diluted earnings per share (EPS) grew 2 percent to reach $3.80.

Earnings per share excluding the mark-to-market, divestiture, tax and insurance items would total $3.98, a 13 percent increase from comparable earnings of $3.52 per share in fiscal 2008.

CEO Comments

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Ken Powell said, “In today’s very challenging economic environment, our leading food brands offer the quality, convenience and value that consumers are looking for and, as a result, our businesses are showing strong growth.

"In 2009, we held our margins in the face of sharply higher input costs, and we significantly increased the level of consumer marketing support for our brands.

"These actions have positioned General Mills to achieve another year of good growth in fiscal 2010.”

Fourth Quarter

Net sales for the fourth quarter grew 5 percent to $3.6 billion. Pound volume growth contributed 3 points of the sales increase.

Foreign currency translation reduced sales growth by 3 points.

Gross margin recovered from depressed prior-year levels.

Consumer marketing spending in the final quarter grew 19 percent and, even with that strong reinvestment, segment operating profits rose 29 percent.

Earnings after tax totaled $359 million, reflecting a net gain from mark-to-market valuation of certain commodity positions and a lower fourth-quarter tax rate.

Diluted earnings per share reached $1.07 compared to $0.53 in last year’s fourth quarter.

Excluding a loss on product lines divested in the fourth quarter of 2009, and the mark-to-market effects in both 2008 and 2009, EPS would have totaled $0.86, up 18 percent from $0.73 last year.

For more information, call 763-764-6364.

See Related Websites/Articles:

• Full General Mills Report
• General Mills

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