Ahold Delhaize reports 'solid end' to 2022

Despite double-digit food inflation, Ahold Delhaize president and CEO Frans Muller reported on Wednesday a “solid end to the year” for the Dutch retailer’s fourth quarter earnings.

Ahold Delhaize, the parent of grocers Food Lion and Hannaford, said U.S. same-store sales (excluding gas) increased by 9.3% in the company's fourth fiscal quarter of 2022.

U.S. highlights of the Dutch retailer’s fourth quarter included net sales growth, which saw an increase of 9.2% during the period, to $15.8 billion.

The company's fourth quarter included online sales growth in the U.S. of 17.3% in constant currency. This builds on top of 30.5% constant currency growth in the same quarter last year, Ahold Delhaize reported.

Ahold Delhaize banners Food Lion and Hannaford continued to lead brand performance with double-digit comparable sales growth for the quarter. “The Food Lion Feeds program achieved an important milestone with its one billionth meal donated, and is well on the way to reaching its goal of 1.5 billion meals donated by 2025,” Muller said in a statement.

Looking at Ahold Delhaize’s U.S. developments in more detail, Muller said “U.S. brands' sales from loyalty programs and online orders reached all-time highs. This has been a trend we have seen building throughout the year, as our consistent investment in growing these capabilities continues to pay off.”

In particular, Muller said the company is “increasingly encouraged by the progress we see at Stop & Shop, where the brand's remodeled New York City stores are delivering double-digit sales growth and exceeding expectations.” Ahold Delhaize plans to remodel eight stores in New York City during the first quarter of 2023 and will also roll out key learnings to 40 other stores in the fleet throughout the year.

Muller anticipates that with inflation remaining high, the company will continue to focus on reducing costs and to seek new opportunities to keep prices as low as possible.

To reinforce its commitments, the company introduced “Accelerate,” an initiative to strengthen Ahold Delhaize’s Save For Our Customer cost- savings program. “I am particularly excited about our plans around monetization, mechanization and our digital ecosystem, which I am convinced will drive long-term competitive advantage and benefits for our customers,” Muller said.

Looking ahead, Muller acknowledged that despite the “increasing macro-economic and geopolitical challenges, we expect to deliver consistent results in 2023, with a strong focus on cash-flow generation,” Muller said.

Ahold Delhaize USA banner stores include Stop & Shop, Hannaford, Martin’s, Giant Food and Food Lion.