IFF Reports Q1 2010

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. reported first quarter 2010 revenue of $654 million, 17% higher than the previous year quarter. Excluding the impact of foreign currency, revenue in local currency increased 13%.

"We are very pleased to report financial results that are strong and slightly above the preliminary projections we announced in March," said Doug Tough, chairman and CEO. "We continued to see solid momentum throughout the quarter as both our Flavor and Fragrance teams did an excellent job capitalizing on new business opportunities. The combination of this strong commercial performance as well as some elements of customer restocking and favorable year-over-year comparisons, allowed us to deliver strong local currency sales growth that resulted in a substantial increase in our adjusted EPS."

Tough added, "We continue to be mindful that economic conditions remain fluid and that a portion of our success can be attributed to the benefits of customer restocking as well as favorable comparisons versus a soft year-ago period. Nonetheless, we feel confident that the underlying health of our commercial performance is strong and as a result, we will continue to monitor our performance throughout the balance of the year as we look to make targeted investments to strengthen our marketplace position."

For the fragrance business unit, local currency sales in the first quarter increased 18% over the previous year period as all categories reported strong results. The accelerated performance in the emerging markets continued, particularly greater Asia, where every Fragrance Compound category experienced double-digit growth. In the Fine Fragrance and Beauty Care category, Fine Fragrance reversed its recent trends, growing at a very strong double-digit rate. While new business gains helped support the strong Fine Fragrance results, a portion of the improvement can be attributed to favorable comparisons as well as some elements of customer restocking. Beauty Care performance continued to build momentum, growing at a double-digit rate, as both Hair Care and Toiletries drove results. Functional Fragrance once again performed very well as Fabric Care performance continued to accelerate. Fragrance Ingredients sales also improved, as local currency sales increased 21%, reflecting an underlying improvement in demand and favorable comparison versus the year-ago period.

 

For the company’s full first quarter 2010 financial report, click here.

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