Conglomerate Masan's net revenue up 3% to $800 mln in Q1

Leading Vietnamese conglomerate Masan Group, listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) as MSN, recorded a net revenue of VND18.71 trillion ($797.4 million) in 2022, up 3% year-on-year.

"In general, Masan’s operating results remained resilient despite a challenging macro environment," the firm said in a Friday release.

Net profit was dragged down by higher interest expenses of VND369 billion ($15.73 million).

"Management will focus on improving the bottom line across the business portfolio and expects tailwinds in the second half of this year for the banking sector and declining interest rates, which will enhance overall profitability," the multi-sector noted.

In Q1/2023, Vietnam experienced a slow start with GDP growth falling to 3.3%, the lowest in the last five years. The consumer price index, a gauge of inflation, rose to 4.2%, indicating persistent inflationary pressures. Additionally, import and export both reported declines of 14.7% and 11.9% year-on-year, respectively, signaling a reduction in the demand for Vietnamese products.

Despite the number of tourists increasing 30 times compared to the same period last year, the recovery of the tourism sector was slow and in Q1/2023, the number of international tourists was only 60% of that during the pre-Covid period.

As a result, consumers are more concerned about their income and employment prospects, leading to a downturn in sentiment and demand. The concern was reflected in business performance across the consumer industry in the first quarter.

As market liquidity increased and interest rates began to soften in March 2023, Masan anticipated that interest pressures would decrease in the upcoming quarters.

The CrownX

The CrownX, Masan’s integrated consumer-retail platform that consolidates WinCommerce and Masan Consumer Holdings, recorded slight top-line decline in a challenging macro environment and weakened consumer sentiment, delivering revenue of VND13.3 trillion ($566.92 million) in Q1/2023, down 1.1% year-on-year.

WinCommerce

WinCommerce's (WCM) net revenue recorded VND7.34 trillion ($312.66 million), up 0.5% year-on-year. WCM opened 55 new WinMart+ minimarts and one new WinMart supermarket in Q1/2023, totaling 3,442 locations nationwide for both minimarts and supermarkets.

The rolled out TPay payment platform alongside Techcombank nationwide achieved 9,000 new accounts per day as of April 28 and demonstrated strong traction to turn WCM’s outlets into financial product and service distribution points.

Masan Consumer Holdings

Due to the transfer and deconsolidation of processed meat to Masan MEATLife, Masan Consumer Holdings' (MCH) net revenue decreased by 2.8% year-on-year to VND6.27 trillion ($267.05 million) in Q1/2023, compared to VND6.45 trillion ($274.85 million) in Q1/2022.

On a like-for-like basis, which exclude the revenue of processed meat, net revenue increased by 2.6%. Seasonings, home and personal care, and coffee recorded 12.6%, 26.6%, and 21.9% growth rates year-on-year, respectively. The improvement in sales in these categories are offset by the decline of 7.0%, 1.2%, and 12.5% in convenience foods, beverage, and beer, respectively.

MCH has maintained healthy stock levels across different categories, achieving VND1.3 trillion ($55.41 million) by end of Q1/2023, versus VND2 trillion ($85.25 million) by the end of Q1/2022.

Phuc Long Heritage coffee chain

Flagship revenue recorded VND311 billion ($13.26 million), up 11.8% year-on-year in Q1/2023, meanwhile the earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) declined due to lower revenue. For kiosks, Masan are testing the “Hub-and-spokes” model with some positive initial results.

Masan MEATLife

Masan MEATLife's (MML) revenue increased to VND1.6 trillion ($68.2 million) in Q1/2023, up 71.8% from VND931 billion ($39.68 million) in Q1/2022. On a like-for-like basis which includes processed meat in 2022, revenue increased by 25.6% in Q1/2023 billion from VND1.27 trillion ($52.22 million) in Q1/2022, thanks to higher sales across all segments of MML, especially processed meat.

Masan High-Tech Materials

Masan High-Tech Materials' revenue decreased 3.6% year-on-year in Q1/2023 due to negative impact from lower feed grade impacting NPMC production volumes and H.C. Starck’s higher base effect that saw customer building inventory in early 2022 post-COVID. Tungsten prices in Q1/2023 averaged $335/mtu, 2% higher than Q1/2022 at $328/mtu. Copper revenue increased thanks to the sale of 6,000 tons delivered to domestic customers.

Techcombank

Techcombank, Masan’s associate, contributed VND961 billion ($40.96 million) in EBITDA in Q1/2023, representing a decline of 18.4% year-on-year.

MSN shares edged up 1.11% to VND73,100 ($3.12) each at the close on Friday.