Aryzta AG, the world’s biggest maker of frozen baked goods, said first-quarter revenue rose 32 per cent, helped by growth in the North American market.
Sales increased to €865.5 million ($1.1 billion) in the three months through October, the Zurich-based company said in a statement today. The stock advanced 2.55 Swiss francs, or 7.9 per cent, to 35 francs, the day's peak, at 8.25am (Irish time) in Zurich trading.
Aryzta was created in August when Ireland's IAWS Group bought Switzerland's Hiestand Holding AG, combining Delice de France bread with Hiestand croissants. Frozen baked goods generate about €30 billion a year in sales globally and are winning market share from Europe's traditional bakeries.
Acquisitions at Origin Enterprises, a maker of animal-feed ingredients that's majority-owned by Aryzta, also boosted profit in the past fiscal year.
While the current financial crisis poses "challenges," Aryzta is "well-positioned" and has €1 billion in credit lines, the company said in the statement.
Chief Executive Officer Owen Killian has previously said the global specialty bakery market is growing 4 per cent to 5 per cent a year.
The executive said in June that Aryzta aimed to double per-share profit in five years.
Bloomberg