Loblaw earns $529M in Q4 profits as Canadians continue to be hit with higher food prices - CBC News

Loblaw Companies on Thursday forecast annual earnings above analysts' expectations, after the Canadian retailer's fourth-quarter results beat estimates, helped by strength in its pharmacy business and as demand held up for groceries.

The company says it earned a profit available to common shareholders of $529 million. Its fourth-quarter revenue rose about 10 per cent to $14.01 billion, topping estimates of $13.75 billion.

On an adjusted basis, Loblaw earned $1.76 per share, beating analysts' expectations of $1.71 per share.

Consumers spending on essentials

The cooking oil aisle at a Toronto Loblaws grocery store is pictured on Oct. 18, 2022. Retailers are leaning on sales of food and medicines as rising prices are forcing consumers to prioritize spending on essentials and trade down to cheaper private-label alternatives from higher-priced brands. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)

Retailers are leaning on sales of food and medicines as rising prices are forcing consumers to prioritize spending on essentials and trade down to cheaper private-label alternatives from higher-priced brands.

Loblaw posted a 9.7 per cent rise in retail segment sales, reflecting strong growth in its food and drug businesses, with steady demand for cough and cold medicines, as well as high-margin beauty and cosmetics products.

Retail bellwether Walmart Inc., however, forecast its full-year earnings below estimates on Tuesday, and warned that tight spending by consumers could pressure profit margins.

Loblaw, on the other hand, expects its full-year 2023 adjusted earnings per common share to grow in the low double-digits compared with the average analyst estimate of 9.64 per cent, according to Refinitiv IBES data.

A lack of competition

Groceries are pictured in a Vaughan, Ont., supermarket on Aug. 16, 2022. Several converging factors are putting upward pressure on food costs, including geopolitical events like the war in Ukraine, as well as climate-related disasters like a surge of avian flu in North America that is driving up poultry prices. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)

Dr. Phoebe Stephens, an assistant professor of food security and sustainable agriculture at Dalhousie University, said that grocery retail in Canada is heavily concentrated, with about 80 per cent of sales controlled by five major chains, including Loblaw.

"Whether or not greedflation is at play is really, really difficult to nail down," Stephens said, noting that food processing and manufacturing are also heavily concentrated parts of the sector.

"So there is a lack of competition there as well. And that might be allowing these companies to raise prices more so than they would be able to if there was greater competition."

Several converging factors are putting upward pressure on food costs, including geopolitical events like the war in Ukraine, as well as climate-related disasters like a surge of avian flu in North America that is driving up poultry prices.

"But there is also a question mark about the role of market concentration and a lack of competition in driving up these food prices," Stephens said. "Because of their unique position in the food system, grocery retailers actually have power over both suppliers and consumers."

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2023-02-23 14:42:36Z
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