Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC), one of the largest Asian food service companies, reported a 15.3 percent growth in attributable net income to P2.81 billion in the first nine months of 2024, as third-quarter earnings rose 24.1 percent to P8.47 billion.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), Jollibee Group President and CEO Ernesto Tanmantiong said, "during the third quarter, we successfully completed the acquisition of Compose Coffee, and the results that we are reporting today include the impact of this value-accretive transaction."
"Our consolidated systemwide sales (SWS) for the quarter increased by 13.2 percent, driven by the international business, which grew by 20.5 percent. Compose Coffee contributed 11.5 percent to the growth of the international business' SWS and added 2,580 stores to the global store network at the end of the quarter," he added.
The Philippine business posted a healthy increase in SWS (up 8.5 percent) and same-store sales (SSS, up 6.4 percent), even after registering strong SWS and SSS growth of 16.5 percent and 13 percent, respectively, last year. Organically, the international business grew SWS by nine percent and SSS by 4.5 percent.
The Jollibee brand, which has over 1,700 stores globally and accounts for 51 percent of the Jollibee Group's organic SWS, grew robustly by 12.6 percent in the third quarter. Growth was broad-based, coming from all regions: Philippines (up 10.3 percent), North America (up 14.4 percent), EMEAA (up 26.8 percent), and China (Hong Kong and Macau, up 12.7 percent).
The growth in the Jollibee Group's SWS for the quarter was driven by a combination of same-store sales growth (SSSG, up 5.7 percent), new store sales (up 1.8 percent), and changes in foreign currency (1.2 percent). Compose Coffee contributed 4.6 percent to global SWS. Revenues grew by 10.1 percent, with Compose Coffee adding 1.4 percent to that growth.
SSSG of the Philippine business increased by 6.4 percent, mainly coming from Jollibee, Mang Inasal, and Chowking. EMEA grew by 10.5 percent, driven by Jollibee Vietnam, which posted SSSG of 14 percent.
In North America, Jollibee US and Canada grew by 19.5 percent and 19.7 percent, respectively, while Smashburger declined by 4.5 percent. For the coffee and tea segment, CBTL posted 10.7 percent growth, Milksha was up 4.2 percent, and Highlands Coffee was down 2.5 percent.
China declined by 12.1 percent due to continued weak consumer spending. Overall, SSSG of the international business grew by 4.5 percent.
Operating income for the quarter increased by 11.6 percent, with the increase coming from the Philippine business (8.5 percent year-over-year growth) and the consolidation of Compose Coffee, which delivered close to P500 million in income from Aug. 16 to Sept. 30, 2024.
Excluding Compose Coffee, the international business' operating income for the quarter declined compared to the same quarter last year but remained profitable.
"While we were up against a record quarter last year, we achieved an 11.6 percent increase in operating income and an 80 basis point (bp) improvement in gross profit margin," said Jollibee Group Chief Financial and Risk Officer Richard Shin.
He noted, "this quarter's earnings performance was highlighted by the consistent strong performance of the Philippine business and contributions from Compose Coffee. Additionally, the global Jollibee brand showed continued strength, growing operating income for the quarter by strong double-digits. Our organic operating income growth was flat as our investment in people weighed on our general and administrative expenses."
At the end of September 2024, the Jollibee Group's store network increased by 42.8 percent to 9,598 compared to a year ago: Philippines (3,340) and International (6,258) – 568 in China, 381 in North America, 362 in EMEA, 815 with Highlands Coffee (mainly in Vietnam), 1,219 with CBTL, 333 with Milksha.