Retailer Casino 2022 core profit falls; in exclusive talks with Teract (updated)

Teract SA

10/03/2023 07:06

* 
      2022 group trading profit 1.117 bln euros, down 5.9%
    

        * 
      Confident to complete 4.5 bln euros disposal plan end-2023
    

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      Eyes 250 mln euros cost reduction at retail banners in
2023
    

  
 (Adds details)
    By Dominique Vidalon
       PARIS, March 10 (Reuters) - Retailer Casino  CASP.PA  on
Friday aimed to reduce its debt and cut costs this year after
reporting a 5.9% decline in 2022 group operating profit,
reflecting a slump at its core French operations and low cash
following weak fourth-quarterly sales.
    Casino also announced it had signed an exclusive agreement
with Teract  TRACT.PA  to combine their retail activities in
France within an entity controlled by the former.
    Casino, which has been selling assets to cut debt,
reiterated that it aimed to complete the final 400 million euros
 ($423.64 million) leg of its 4.5 billion euros disposal plan in
France by the end of 2023.
    Casino also pledged to continue selling assets in Latin
America this year, having announced earlier this week that it
had initiated a study on a potential new sale of part of its
stake in Brazil supermarket chain Assai  ASAI3.SA  for about
$600 million to accelerate deleveraging.
    The French retailer, which ended 2022 with 434 million euros
in cash and cash equivalents, said it would not pay a dividend
for 2022 in order to prioritise debt reduction. 
        At end-2022, consolidated net debt stood at 6 billion
euros against 5.9 billion euros a year earlier, due to an
increase in the debt of Assai linked to its expansion plan. 
    Casino, which also controls Brazil's Grupo Pao de Acucar
 PCAR3.SA , said group's 2022 operating profit fell 5.9% to
1.117 billion euros. At constant-exchange rates the decline
reached 12.1%.
        This reflected a 9.1% fall in the core profit of the
French retail business, where sales at the Geant hypermarkets
dropped fell sharply in the fourth quarter of 2022 amid
competitive pressure.
    The company's 2023 priorities in France include reducing
inventory by 190 million euros in the first half, and a new
cost-reduction plan of 250 million euros at retail banners as
well an an acceleration of the expansion strategy in convenience
stores.
        
  
     ($1 = 0.9442 euros)
    

 (Reporting by Dominique Vidalon; Editing by Benoit Van
Overstraeten; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
 ((dominique.vidalon@thomsonreuters.com; +33149495432; Reuters
Messaging: dominique.vidalon.reuters.com@reuters.net))