FEMSA Reports Solid Results for Fourth Quarter and Full Year Ended December 31, 2002
MONTERREY, Mexico, Feb 19, 2003 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Fomento Economico Mexicano, S.A. de C.V. ("FEMSA") (NYSE:FMX; BMV:FEMSA UBD; FEMSA UB):
-- Consolidated total revenues up 5.7% for the year, reaching Ps. 52.941
billion; seventh consecutive year of double-digit consolidated operating income
growth: 11.2% for 2002, expanding operating margin by 90 basis points to reach a
record 17.9%.
-- Policy change regarding guidance: FEMSA will no longer provide
operating or financial targets for its operations going forward.
Fomento Economico Mexicano, S.A. de C.V. ("FEMSA") (NYSE: FMX; BMV: FEMSA UBD; FEMSA UB), the Leader in Latin Beverages, reported today growth in total revenues and operating income across its main business units for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2002, resulting in a significant margin expansion in every major subsidiary.
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FEMSA and Subsidiaries
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Growth compared to same period of the previous year
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Changes in %, in real peso terms
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Total Revenue Operating Income(a) Operating Margin(b)
4 Qtr 02 2002 4 Qtr 02 2002 2002 change
FEMSA Consolidated 6.7 % 5.7 % 10.3 % 11.2 % 17.9 % + 90 bps
FEMSA Cerveza -1.0 0.5 -1.2 5.3 18.9 + 80
Coca-Cola FEMSA 4.8 5.3 12.5 14.6 25.2 + 200
FEMSA Comercio 20.9 18.7 57.2 44.3 4.6 + 80
FEMSA Empaques 10.7 0.3 17.8 5.0 15.2 + 70
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(a)Before Management Fees where applicable
(b)Operating Margin is the ratio of Operating Income to Total Revenues
Jose Antonio Fernandez, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of FEMSA commented,
"During the year 2002 we delivered solid results in spite of a challenging
business climate, as the expected economic recovery failed to materialize in
Mexico as well as abroad. We made considerable progress on our strategic goals,
and achieved record levels of profitability for the year, expanding our
operating margin to 17.9% of total revenues, and our EBITDA margin to 25.7% of
total revenues. Furthermore, we continued to strengthen our beverage model by
pursuing attractive avenues of growth in our core operations. As most of you
know, we are now in the process of completing Coca-Cola FEMSA's acquisition of
Panamco. The integration phase is already in progress, and we should be in a
position to quickly begin implementing the new strategic business plan upon
closing. We expect the transaction to provide FEMSA with access to a truly
continental platform, which we will seek to leverage fully. We are convinced
that the potential for growth that this transaction brings to our company,
clearly outweighs the challenges that we may encounter."
To obtain the full text of this earnings release, please visit our Investor Relations website at http://ir.femsa.com/ under the Financial Reports section
This report may contain certain forward-looking statements concerning FEMSA's future performance that should be considered as good faith estimates made by the Company. These forward-looking statements reflect management expectations and are based upon currently available data. Actual results are subject to future events and uncertainties, which could materially impact the Company's actual performance.
FEMSA is Latin America's largest beverage company in terms of sales. Founded in 1890 and headquartered in Monterrey, Mexico, FEMSA is strategically comprised of and operates by means of the following subsidiaries: FEMSA Cerveza, which produces, distributes and exports various brands of beer such as Tecate, Carta Blanca, Superior, Sol, XX Lager, Dos Equis, and Bohemia; Coca-Cola FEMSA, the largest bottler for The Coca-Cola Co. in Mexico, which produces and distributes carbonated beverages such as Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Light, Fanta, Sprite, and Quatro; and the Strategic Businesses Division, which groups the packaging (FEMSA Empaques), retail (FEMSA Comercio) and logistics (FEMSA Logistica) operations, whose main objective is to offer strategic competitive advantages to the beverage subsidiaries.
CONTACT: FEMSA
Juan Fonseca, (52) 81 83 28 62 45
juan.fonseca@femsa.com.mx
or
Alan Alanis, (52) 81 83 28 62 11
alan.alanis@femsa.com.mx
or
Arturo Ballester, (52) 81 83 28 61 89
arturo.ballester@femsa.com.mx