Holcim Group,the Swiss building materials firm, said on Thursday that its first-quarter recurring Earnings Before Interest and Taxes (EBIT) rose to CHF 532 million from last year's CHF 493 million - an increase of 7.8%.
Recurring EBIT grew 17.1% in local currency. Recurring Earnings Before Interest and Taxes Depreciation and Amortization (EBITDA) was CHF 1.01 billion, up from prior year's CHF 970 million. Net sales dropped 2.4% to CHF 5.59 billion from prior year's CHF 5.73 billion.
In local currency, sales grew 3.4%, but sales were flat organically. North America delivered margin expansion with a 3.9% increase in local currency recurring EBIT, driven by strong underlying market demand.
In Latin America, Holcim achieved strong growth in net sales and recurring EBIT. Europe delivered double-digit recurring EBIT growth, with an increase in the recurring EBIT margin of 1.5 percentage points.
Looking ahead for fiscal 2024, Holcim continues to expect organic net sales growth of above 4%, with additional growth from mergers and acquisitions (M&A) of above 2%. The company still expects over-proportional growth in recurring EBIT, and an increase in recurring EBIT margin to 18%.
In North America, strong performance is expected to continue in 2024. Jan Jenisch, chairman and chief executive, said, "In Q1 2024, we delivered over-proportional recurring EBIT growth of 17.1% in local currency, which more than offset the strength of the Swiss franc. We continued to execute value-accretive transactions, making five acquisitions and closing four divestments, with net M&A adding more than 3% to our net sales in the first quarter.