Grupo Herdez, S.A.B. de C.V.

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the Grupo ERDE's third quarter 2024 earnings conference call. Before we begin, I would like to remind you that this call is being recorded and that the information discussed today may include forward-looking statements regarding the company's financial and operating performance. All projections are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially. Please refer to the detailed note in the company's press release regarding forward-looking statements. If you require operator assistance, please press star then zero. At this time, I would like to turn the conference over to Andrea Amalzurutia, Head of Finance and Sustainability. Ms. Amalzurutia, please go ahead.

Thank you, Drew. Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us on today's call. As we anticipated in our previous conference call, Our third quarter figures were challenged by difficult comps in preserves. We saw continued momentum in our export segment, but faced unexpected weather-related disruptions in Impulse and disappointing performance in Megamex. Starting with the good news, our export segment truly shone this quarter. Driven by the strong performance of mayonnaise in supermarkets and expansion into new clubs in regions like the Bay Area, and South California, we saw a 24.1% increase in dollar sales. This growth was further fueled by a favorable exchange rate and the successful introduction of our two-pound jog salsa in the US market, which contributed significantly to our sales volume increase. On the domestic front, it was a more challenging quarter. Severe weather events, including hurricanes and flooding, significantly impacted our impulse segment, particularly Elados, Mesle. We estimate these disruptions led to roughly 40 million in lost sales. However, it wasn't all bad news. Our original business within the impulse segment demonstrated resilience, growing close to 7% and continuing its recovery trend. This is thanks to several initiatives we've implemented across our brands, such as the flavor innovation with the Hello Kitty license, which was a real hit among consumers. Turning into margins, our growth margin came in at a healthy 40.5%, supported by a favorable sales mix and operational efficiency. the weather-related disruptions and increased commercial investments did put some pressure on our EBIT. The export segments, on the other hand, delivered a strong margin expansion, achieving its best margin since the fourth quarter of 2020. Now, turning into the not-so-great results in the quarter, the performance of Megamex continued to be very challenging. As you saw in our report, Income from unconsolidated affiliates was significantly lower than last year, primarily due to challenges at Avomex and Don Miguel. Megamex is facing a tough environment with soaring avocado prices, increased competition from cheaper alternatives, and a shift in consumer preferences towards home cooking. This has put a squeeze on the margins. We are actively exploring options to stabilize the businesses' sensitivity to avocado price fluctuations, including diversifying our sourcing and investing in marketing to better understand and adapt to evolving consumer trends. Despite the challenges, Don Miguel's cash flow is positive year-to-date due to a redesign in the manufacturing layout and favorable sub-commodity inputs. This underperformance underscores the need to structural changes of Megamix. Together with our partner, we've recently named an interim CEO to ensure effective execution with a sense of urgency. Looking ahead, we remain committed to investing in our growth and sustainability. Key projects include capacity expansion, equipment modernization, and new store openings. Our strong pre-cash flow of $603 million in the quarter allows us to continue this investment while maintaining a healthy financial position. With that, I will now turn the call over to Gerardo.

Thank you, Andrea. Good morning, everyone. Despite the headwinds from global geopolitical uncertainties, input cost pressures, the exchange rate volatility, and a slowing economy, We have maintained our focus on delivering results. While third quarter results may not match our expectations, we continue to allocate resources towards operational efficiency, including IT and product innovation. For the next 15 months, our CAPEX allocation will be in four major projects. Our new long pasta line, equipment update for tomato puree and mole, a new multi-format line for salsa production for exports and obviously the ERP among other smaller projects. For the present quarter, we expect impulse and export with the same momentum. We see sales at both segments growing in the low 20s while preserves should be flattish. Consolidated EBIT and EBITDA will also be flattish versus last year, having inputs and exports offsetting softer margins within preserves. This fourth quarter expectation is in line with our full year forecast shared with you previously. Lastly, due to the recent changes at Megamex leadership, we will not provide a forecast for this business. I'd like to give you some perspective on what we expect going forward. Doing business in Mexico has become expensive and complex on all fronts. Despite an overwhelming welcome to the higher disposable income in our country, implementing all the proposed labor reforms will be strenuous. These changes will impact our operating costs, require adjustments in workforce shifts and demanding an already scarce resource label. Despite trying to mitigate these and other inflationary effects, 2025 looks very challenging. In a softer consumption environment, the ability to pass cost inflation will be hampered by share of market losses. while managing input and expenses costs. On the other hand, we have tactical and operational strategies that must continue, such as the Yamina expansion strategy, the logistic footprint, increasing our manufacturing capacity, and the implementation of our ERP, to name a few. Having said that, decisively will sacrifice our short-term performance for a stronger long-term. We are confident in our strategy. The U.S. market is our priority, as the export segment has evidently shown, and we believe that M&A opportunities on both sides of the border will arise in the near future, and we are prepared to seize them. We will update our 2025 guidance in January. We're now ready to take your questions. Drew, please go ahead.