(Reuters) -Cadbury -Parent Mondelez provides for a larger drop than estimated in its annual profit on Tuesday, reporting higher cost pressure, in particular by increasing cocoa prices, sending its shares by almost 6% after the bell.
Cocoa prices – A key chocolate ingredient – have increased tirelessly in the past year, forcing companies such as Mondelez to increase the prices of their products.
This pushed consumers under the budget, who were already struggling with a cost of living crisis, towards cheaper alternatives.
Mondelez, based in Chicago, expects its profit of 2025 to decrease by 10% on an adjusted basis, compared to the average estimate of analysts by a drop of 6.7%, according to data compiled by LSEG .
“This prospect does not reflect any taxation of import prices by the United States and the potential reprisals taken by other countries, because the tariff and commercial environment is uncertain and evolving quickly for the moment,” said the manufacturer Oreo and Toblerone.
The volumes of Mondelez in Europe, its largest market per income, fell in the fourth quarter due to additional price increases. In North America, however, volumes increased following a price reduction of 0.9 percent.
The high increase in cocoa prices, associated with higher transport costs, has led to a drop of 650 base points of the gross margin adjusted from the company to 31.5%.
Mondelez declared a net turnover of $ 9.60 billion for the three months closed on December 31, against $ 9.64 billion.
On an adjusted basis, he won 65 cents per action, below the estimation of analysts of 66 cents per action.
(Report by Neil J Kanatt in Bengaluru; edition by Shilpi Majumdar)
