TreeHouse Foods reported fourth quarter earnings of $0.85 per fully diluted share compared to $0.78 per fully diluted share reported for Q4 last year.
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TreeHouse Foods reported adjusted earnings per share in the fourth quarter of $1.08 compared to $0.99 in the fourth quarter of the prior year, excluding the items described below.
The company's 2015 fourth quarter results included three items noted below that, in management's judgment, affect the assessment of earnings. The first item was a $0.11 per share expense for acquisition, integration and related costs.
The second item was a $0.06 per share loss on the foreign currency re-measurement of intercompany notes. The final item was a $0.06 per share loss on restructurings and facility consolidation costs.
Net sales for the fourth quarter totaled $865.4 million compared to $903.5 million last year, a decrease of 4.2%, due to unfavorable Canadian foreign exchange, reduced volume/mix across most categories, and pricing concessions.
Compared to the fourth quarter of last year, sales in the fourth quarter of 2015 for the North American Retail Grocery segment decreased 2.3%; sales for the Food Away From Home segment decreased 6.1%; and sales for the Industrial and Export segment decreased 13.5%.
Reported gross margins were 21% in the fourth quarter of 2015 compared to 19.9% in the fourth quarter of the prior year.
The increase in gross margin was due to improved operating performance and favorable input costs, partially offset by the unfavorable impact of Canadian foreign exchange.
In the fourth quarter of 2014, cost of sales included $0.8 million of acquisition, integration and related costs. In the fourth quarter of 2015, cost of sales included $3.0 million of restructuring and facility consolidation costs. ■
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