Tag: third

More than two months after going live on the New York Stock Exchange, Utz Brands is reporting “strong financial results” for its first quarter as a public company.

The Hanover-based salty snack manufacturer released its financial results for the third quarter on Thursday. The quarter, which ended on September 27, marked an increase of net sales by 24.2% over the prior-year period for a total of $248 million.

Dylan Lissette, CEO of Utz, attributed the company’s recent growth to a strong portfolio of brands, a competitively-advantaged manufacturing and distribution network and strong execution.

”Our growth opportunities are multi-faceted, and our results for our third quarter demonstrate our commitment to be the fastest-growing, pure-play branded salty snack company of scale in the U.S.,” Lissette said.

In the third quarter of 2020, Utz Brands saw a gross profit of $86.2 million, an increase of $16.4 million over the same period last year.

The company suffered a net loss of $7.3 million, compared to a net income of $10.3 million the year prior, which it credited to transaction-related expenses from the combination of Collier Creek Holdings and Utz Brands Holdings in August.

Utz completed its merger with the special purpose acquisition company on August 28 and went public with an enterprise value of $1.56 billion on August 31.

Utz also reported an adjusted EBITDA growth of 39.8% to $38.2 million, compared to $27.3 million in the third quarter of 2019. The company noted in the report that the increase was due to higher net sales and higher adjusted gross profit margins.

At the end of September, Utz entered a definitive agreement with Chicago-based Conagra Brands, Inc. to acquire certain assets of H.K. Anderson, including the manufacturer’s peanut butter-filled pretzel snacks.

The deal, which is expected to close this month, would cost Utz under $10 million and is expected to contribute $12 million in net sales and $2 million in adjusted EBITDA in 2021.