Del Monte Pacific shares fell early Tuesday after the food-and-beverage company said it swung to a quarterly loss on inflationary pressures.
Shares were down 7.0% at S$0.20 (15 U.S. cents) in morning trading, taking losses for the year to 40%.
The Singapore-based company said it posted a loss of US$11.9 million in its fourth quarter ended April as higher raw-material, packaging, manufacturing and logistics costs lowered its gross margin, offsetting a 2.6% on-year rise in sales. Its gross profit margin fell to 20.2% from 25.9%.
The company posted a profit of US$20 million in the same period a year ago.
Del Monte said the global environment “remains unstable, with certain cost pressures and consumers becoming more cautious with their spending.”
It added, however, that it expects net profit to rise in its fiscal 2024 year, helped by a focus on improving working capital–especially in reducing inventory–to boost cash flow.