November 30, 2011

Zemaitijos Pienas' profit gets halved in nine months

In the first nine months of 2011, Zemaitijos Pienas, a Lithuanian dairy group, saw its combined net earnings plunged by more than a half, to LTL4.213 million (EUR 1.22 million; US$1.62 million), from LTL9.521 million (US$3.66 million) on-year.

Consolidated unaudited sales rose by 18.2%, on-year, to LTL372.512 million (US$143.38 million), the company said in its nine-month report.

The EBITDA contracted by 20%, to LTL20.05 million (US$7.72 million), from LTL25.074 million (US$9.65 million) in January through September 2010.

In the third quarter alone, the net earnings contracted fourfold, year-on-year, to LTL1.72 million (US$662,000), while the sales rose by 5%, to LTL124.956 million (US$48.10 million).

The sales in Lithuania increased by 19%, to LTL206.5 million (US$79.48 million), in other Baltic countries and CIS states - by 14%, to LTL98 million (US$37.72 million), in other European countries - by 31%, to LTL64.3 million (US$24.75 million). Sales in the US and other countries totalled LTL3.6 million (US$1.39 million).

The group includes the parent company Zemaitijos  Pienas and the subsidiaries Tarpuciu Pienas and Silutes Rambynas. Zemaitijos Pienas also owns 32% of Latvia's Muizas Piens.

Pienas CEO Algirdas Pazemeckas owned 44.46% of the company in late June. Together with his wife, Danute Pazemeckiene, he controlled a 50.71% stake. Other major shareholders included the customers of Sweden's SEB (11.28%) and Klaipedos Pienas (7.45%).