Glanbia announce results for the first-half of 2023 which included revised guidance for the year, with earnings-per-share outlook upgraded to between 12% and 15%. Profit after tax came in at $193.4m (€177m).

Margins across the business rose, even as revenue declined $3.1bn (€2.84bn) to $2.8bn (€2.56bn). The fall in turnover was a function of lower prices in dairy markets.

Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal, outgoing CEO Siobhán Talbot said that because Glanbia is a greater consumer than producer of whey, the drop in dairy markets has been a net positive for the group.

She said the outlook for dairy prices has worsened in recent weeks, adding that there is now no sign of a rebound in the market in the second half of the year.

Looking into the details of the accounts published, the Optimum Nutrition brand continues to be a major driver of earnings, and now accounts for 60% of GPN revenues.

The Group also announced an interim dividend of 14.22 cent (euro) per share.

End of an era for Glanbia as Talbot retires

As CEO, Siobhán Talbot oversaw major changes at the global nutrition group.

When she took the position of CEO in 2013, Siobhán Talbot said that her priorities were to sustain the group’s growth momentum, focusing on the performance nutrition and global ingredients businesses.

She put a target on that growth momentum, saying the group should achieve adjusted earnings per share growth of at least 8% to 10%. True to her word, COVID-19 aside, that level was achieved throughout her tenure as CEO with that metric growing by at least 9% in every year except 2020.

However, the earnings growth has not been matched with share price growth, which, as the chart below shows, has been sluggish at best over the past decade.

Her time as CEO also saw some major changes to Glanbia. Chief among those was the successful spinoff of Glanbia Ireland – now Tirlán – allowing the group to concentrate on its nutrition business. The continued growth of the flagship Optimum Nutrition brand, which is on track be a $1bn in revenue brand in 2023, is another major success under her leadership.

There have been some missteps along the way, with the mistiming of the purchase of SlimFast chief among those. This week’s half-year results showed another extremely disappointing performance from that brand with US consumer sales cratering 30% in the past three months. Glanbia’s strategy with SlimFast now seems to be to just put it to one side and hope it improves by itself, as investment and marketing spend is focused on sectors that are providing growth.

Talbot told the Irish Farmers Journal that she still saw value in the brand, but the market remained challenging for it. She saw a short-term reduction in investment in SlimFast for 2023, rather than an abandonment of the brand entirely. Glanbia acquired the brand in 2018 for €350m. It reported revenue of less than €90m in the first six months of this year.

When asked how she would rate her time as CEO, Siobhán Talbot said “overall, I am very pleased with how the group progressed”.

Talbot will be replaced by Hugh McGuire, a 20-year Glanbia veteran and current head of Glanbia Performance Nutrition, at the start of 2024. Both Talbot and her predecessor, John Moloney, were also long-time employees of the company before being elevated to the CEO role.