Greetings, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for joining Genomma Lab's third quarter 2023 earnings conference call. All participants will be in listen-only mode. After today's presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask questions. As a reminder, this meeting is being recorded and will be available for replay from the investor relations section of Genomma's website following the call. I'll now turn the call over to Barbara Cano of the Inspire Group. Please go ahead.
Welcome, everyone. On today's call are Marco Sparvieri, Chief Executive Officer, and Antonio Zamora, Chief Financial Officer. Before we get started, I'd like to remind you that the remarks today will include forward-looking statements such as the company's financial guidance and expectations, including long-term objectives and forecasts, as well as expectations regarding Genomma's business, assets, products, strategies, demand, and markets. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. They are also based on assumptions as of today, and the company undertakes no obligation to update them as a result of new information or future events. Let me now turn the call over to Marco Sparvieri.
Thank you, Daniel. Good morning, everybody. In Q3 2023, Genomma exhibited a strong performance. Our year-on-year top-line growth reached 16.9% when adjusted for like-for-like currency and excluding Argentina. Translated into Mexican pesos, this represents a growth of 1%. This change was influenced by the Mexican peso appreciation and a substantial 38% devaluation in Argentina. Excluding the economic challenges in Argentina, which despite their complexity, our team has adeptly managed, top-line growth in Mexican pesos stood at 9.1%. Additionally, our EBITDA margin rose to 21.2%, marking an increase of 20 basis points year-on-year. Notably, our cash conversion cycle also improved, shortening by -4 days compared to the previous year. Our major markets flourished, with 76% of the business outpacing local inflation rates.
Specifically, growth rates were Mexico at +16.3%, behind a strong execution of the innovation, point-of-sale execution, and TV communication plan. The US at +14.4%, Brazil at +12.5%, Argentina at +55%, and Colombia at +18%. Emphasizing our core brands continues to bear fruit, with 61% of the business increasing their market share in respective categories. Standout performance included Analgesic s at +11%, SueroX at +36.5%, Tío Nacho at +34.5%, and Novamil infant nutrition at +71%. Cicatricure is on a slowing decline trend at ±1%. However, Asepxia faces headwinds with a dip of -14%. Our push for optimal productivity is on track. We are targeting MXN 1.8 billion by 2027.
In Q3 alone, the San Cayetano plant realized cost savings of MXN 7.2 million, amassing a total of MXN 21.6 million for the year so far. We also wrapped up the design and rollout of a novel logistics program aimed at refining transportation costs, which is set to yield an additional MXN 45 million in annual savings. In summary, Q3 2023 painted a picture of robust financial health, consistent growth in pivotal markets, and tangible strides in our productivity endeavors. Our strategy ahead is clear: amplify our core brand strengths and navigate the skincare sector's challenge to propel further growth. I would like to revisit our dual focus strategy. As we discussed back in February, we have outlined 2 main objectives for the forthcoming years. Firstly, our aim is to concentrate on our flagship brands, with the goal of achieving an additional MXN 1 billion in sales.
Concurrently, we'll be offloading or parting with brands that aren't central to our mission. By adopting this approach, we anticipate sharpening our managerial and operational focus, as well as liberating working capital. Secondly, our emphasis is on productivity. We are embarking on a plan set to yield MXN 1.8 billion through specific productivity initiatives. This endeavor has been pinpointed, and our dedicated team is actively working on bringing them to fruition. Let's pivot to a discussion about our portfolio's performance. Referring to the chart, it's evident that a majority of our primary brands have posted remarkable outcomes, especially when we view it in a like-for-like currency terms, Argentina excluded. Our strategy of directing resources and emphasis on these primary brands is indeed paying dividends. Additionally, it is encouraging to note that Cicatricure is beginning to curb its downturn.
With the rollout of recent innovations already introduced in the market, I am optimistic that we'll see this negative trend reversed by the next quarter. However, Asepxia still requires our attention and efforts. Turning our attention to the market's performance, the news is encouraging. The chart illustrates that all our main markets have reported robust sales for Q3. It is worth emphasizing that each of our leading countries, Mexico, the US, Brazil, and Argentina, are experiencing growth in the high teens% range. In Central America, the issue is primarily with sell-in. Our sell-out, on the other hand, boasts a healthy double-digit growth. Nonetheless, Chile continues to pose challenges. We are thrilled to report that SueroX had another exceptional quarter, with a year-on-year growth of 36.5%. Results are driven by the market expansion to Peru, Chile, Argentina, Central America, the US, and Brazil.
All markets are performing in line or ahead of expectations. Chile, in particular, is performing exceptionally well, with shares up 6.7 points versus a year ago. This chart shows the exceptional performance that SueroX is showing in Chile only 1.5 years after the launch. As you can see, the red line of SueroX is rapidly approaching Powerade and Gatorade. Tío Nacho experienced a strong year-on-year growth of 34.5%, growing market share in all markets. The brand's growth can be attributed to the successful launch of Anti-Canas or Anti-Gray, and the introduction of the 950 ml size. Mexico, Brazil, and Colombia exhibited the strongest performance, growing 31%, 55%, and 63% respectively. Let's take a closer look at the chart on the screen, which showcases the success of our anti-gray hair care version.
As you can see, this variant has become one of our top sellers for the brand, rapidly gaining popularity among our customers. The anti-gray hair version has resonated exceptionally well with our target audience, and its performance is a testament to the strength of the product offering and our ability to meet consumer demands effectively. Now, let's turn our attention to another achievement, the significant success of our 950 ml size variant. As depicted in the chart, the 950 ml size has experienced outstanding sales growth, becoming a standout performer to our brand. This larger size has struck a chord with our consumers, providing them with added value and convenience, leading to its rapid adoption in the market. Its success is a testament to our ability to identify and cater to our customers' preference effectively.
Groomen achieved a robust year-on-year growth of 36.4%. Both markets, Mexico and Chile, delivered positive share growth results. In Chile, the brand grew 1.8 points, and in Mexico, 1.2 points in the quarter. In Mexico, share growth is driven by the introduction of the disposables and cartridges SKUs at Walmart.... The analgesics category experienced strong growth of +11% year-on-year. Our results are buoyed by a notable performance across key brands and markets. X-Ray in the Andean region stands out with a significant growth of +58% comparing to last year, capturing 7% market share year to date in Colombia. These strengths are our stance as the third leading brand in the market. In Mexico, Alliviax has registered an 18.7% increase.
Meanwhile, in Argentina, Tafirol growth of 22% in local currency is tempered by the slowdown of Paracetamol 500 due to its 2022 Omicron baseline. Despite these challenges, we successfully held our market share steady at thirty-seven point 3%. Let's take a closer look at the chart, which vividly illustrates the phenomenal growth of X-Ray in Colombia. In just a few years, X-Ray has achieved a remarkable progress, consolidating its position as the number three player in the category. It's worth noting that a short while ago, X-Ray barely existed in this market. This achievement reflects our brand's strong performance, effective strategies, and the strong acceptance of X-Ray by Colombian consumers. We are proud of the team's dedication and to the brand rapid ascent to a prominent position in the market.
The cough and cold category witnessed a year-over-year growth of 11.1%. Our growth consistently outpaces the market, registering an increase of +1 percentage point in share of market year to date. This momentum is spearheaded by gains in Argentina, +3.3 points year to date, and Mexico, +1.5 points. With this trajectory, we are poised for our most robust season yet in 2023, 2024. The infant nutrition category continued its strong performance, achieving a year-over-year growth of +71%. Our premier brand, Novamil, has seen strong growth across all its core variants, each securing a greater market share in their respective segments. We are delighted to highlight substantial strides in our productivity initiatives.
Having set a goal in February 2023 of MXN 1.8 billion in productivity savings by 2027, we have already secured MXN 268 million in annual savings as of now. Let me now get into the specifics productivity projects that add up to the MXN 268 million in the chart I just showed. Our San Cayetano plant is progressing as expected, delivering cost savings year to date. So far, the plant has achieved total savings of MXN 21.6 million, with MXN 6.2 million achieved in Q1, an additional MXN 8.2 million in Q2, and MXN 7.2 million in Q3. Moving forward, we remain committed to maintaining the highest standards of quality and efficiency, efficiency at the San Cayetano plant. We will continue to implement measures to ensure smooth operations and substantial cost savings.
Over the last three quarters, our team has undertaken a sophisticated project to refine the logistics cost related to customer shipments. This encompassed route optimization, the establishment of stringent purchase order guidelines to streamline transportation costs, enhance truckload mixing, among other improvements. With this program now in action, we anticipate an annual saving of MXN 45 million. As a reminder from our last call, I am free to share that during Q2, we achieved a significant milestone with the successful commissioning of a new Suero line. This expansion has bolstered our manufacturing capacity by an additional 96 million bottles per year. Not only has the new Suero line increased our production capacity, but it has also played a pivotal role in our cost optimization efforts. The expansion has led to a remarkable reduction of -63 million Mexican pesos in Suero costs, resulting in substantial annual savings....
This achievement reflects our committed commitment to continuous improvement and investment in our manufacturing capabilities. The increased capacity and cost savings position us well to meet growing market demands and further enhance our competitive edge. We extend our gratitude to our entire team involved in making this expansion a resounding success, and we look forward to the positive impact it will have on our company's growth performance. Also, in Q2, we successfully concluded a project aimed at optimizing our product labels, and the results have been nothing short of remarkable. Through this initiative, we achieved a significant cost reduction of -55%, translating to an impressive annual savings of MXN 25 million. One of the key strategies behind this success was consolidating our label production from 18 suppliers to just two.
By streamlining our label sourcing, we have not only reduced complexity, but also minimized costs associated with the aspect of our operations. This optimization project exemplifies our commitment to continuous improvement and cost efficiency. The substantial savings achieved will further bolster our profitability and create value for our stakeholders. I commend the efforts of the team involved in execution, in the execution of this project and the strategic vision that has led to its success. We will continue to seek opportunities for enhancement across all aspects of our operations to drive sustainable growth. In Q1, we generated close to MXN 30 million in annual savings by reducing the number of packaging suppliers from 23 to 2, and the number of SKUs from 73 to only 12. Finally, the vertical integration of Vanart manufacturing that will deliver a total of MXN 93 million in annual savings.
So that's it from a business review. What I wanted to highlight is that as we go forward, to 2024, what you should expect is that behind all these productivity efforts that I just mentioned, you're gonna start seeing our EBITDA margin to gradually improve from quarter to quarter, until we reach the level of 24% that we have committed in February, in our Investors Day. Let me now pass it on to Tonio. Tonio?
Thank you, Marco, and thank you to all of the Genomma team for the great work to deliver very strong results in a very challenging Forex environment. Genomma delivered strong third quarter net sales, which reached MXN 4.4 billion for the quarter, a 1% year-on-year increase, despite continued macroeconomic adversity and currency headwinds everywhere. Third quarter EBITDA margin increased by 2.3% year-on-year to reach 21.3%, due to the productivity initiatives and the benefits we are deriving from our manufacturing plant and the productivity projects that Marco described earlier. Forex headwinds from a stronger Mexican peso and the Argentina hyperinflationary accounting effects continue to impact the year-on-year comparison of the company's profitability, net sales growth and profitability.
We've again included a breakdown of the third quarter top-line performance with our results release to provide you with context on the contribution of Genomma's hyperinflationary subsidiary relative to the company's consolidated top-line results, which you can see here, even when we experience very strong FX headwinds in all of the other markets. We want to highlight that despite all of these Forex challenges across the region, this is Genomma's twentieth consecutive quarter of top-line and EBITDA consistent growth trend, as you can see in this chart. Turning to our results by region, third quarter net sales for Mexico increased by 16% year-on-year to reach MXN 2.1 billion with strong core brand sales aligned with our strategy. You'll note that sales of SueroX, XL-3, Tío Nacho, and Tukol again performed extremely well during the quarter.
As you may see in this slide, the strengthening of the Mexican peso impacted our, our results in the US and all the other countries as we report in Mexican pesos. We experienced a 16% appreciation of the Mexican peso versus the US dollar when you compare the FX rate from Q3 2022 versus Q3 2023. Therefore, US third quarter results also increased by double digits in US dollar terms, which as we mentioned earlier, was impacted by the conversion of those extremely positive results into Mexican pesos. Strong cost and expense control, a reorganized end-to-end supply chain team, and an optimized media strategy enabled Genomma to deliver a 350 basis point increase in the US EBITDA margins for the third quarter 2023.
The US reached a double-digit EBITDA margin, and the trend looks positive for the coming quarters. FX challenges impacted all of our markets in Latam. As you may see here in this chart, the currencies of Paraguay, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Colombia, and Chile, all of them had a depreciation against the Mexican peso. Also worth noting is the negative trend of the Argentinian peso against the Mexican peso. The volatility of this country increased during the quarter after the primary elections in that country. As you may see here, more than half of our markets experienced significant FX headwinds, with double-digit depreciations against the Mexican peso.
Third quarter 2023 net sales for our Latin America operations reached MXN 1.9 billion, again, reflecting double-digit increases within most of Genomma's categories and countries when expressed in local currency terms, as Marco has described this quarter and the previous quarter. It's important for everybody to know that all of our markets are very healthy and growing very strongly. We are very proud of the team. However, we also acknowledge what the currency and the hyperinflationary effects have on, on our numbers, as you can see here. I'm pleased to note that during the quarter, we introduced SueroX in Brazil, Argentina, Central America, and Peru, which combined with outstanding core brand performance, offset Genomma's negative results for that region.
SG&A decreased as a percentage of sales, also due to strong cost and expense control, the reorganized end-to-end supply chain team, to which we've referred earlier, and media expense efficiencies during the quarter. As Marco mentioned, we made significant traction on our productivity strategies and on optimizing our overall business. This is resulting in important savings, which will complement the savings, will increasingly derive from our internal manufacturing capabilities, reflected in persistent, sustainable progress. As Marco called out, our Toluca plant delivered more than MXN 7 million in savings during the third quarter, and nearly MXN 22 million year to date. Further, the logistics program Marco described should continue to streamline our operation in and transportation costs, as an important source of savings in the coming months and quarters.
As Marco noted, Genomma's cash conversion cycle was adjusted during the third quarter of 2023, ending at 100 days, which is a 4-day decrease since September 30, 2022. Accounts receivable amounted to MXN 4.3 billion, and inventories closed at MXN 2.3 billion as of September 30, 2023. Days of inventories amounted to 123, which is a substantial 38-year decrease year on year. Importantly, we continue to strengthen Genomma's financial debt maturity profile when on July 20, Genomma issued MXN 600 million additional to our LAB-23 long-term bonds, or Cebures, which was more than 1.3 times oversubscribed. The related proceeds were used to prepay debt with institutional advance, strengthening the company's financial debt maturity profile and reducing the average yield that's TIIE plus spread paid during the third quarter.
Here you can see the maturity profile of Genomma's debt. Again, you may recall a couple of quarters ago, we had a substantial amount of short-term debt that matured earlier, and the successful issuances of our LAB-23 and LAB-23-2 long-term bonds are reflected in this chart, and we will continue optimizing financial expenses and the maturity profile for the future.
... Also of note, after the third quarter's end on August 4, 2023, we announced that Genomma prepaid the total amortization for the second tranche of the IFC's un secured loan, and this prepayment amounted to MXN 272 million. This underscores our ongoing commitment to further strengthen our financial debt maturity profile and to optimize Genomma's average liability duration. Genomma again, paid a cash dividend to shareholders on September 29, representing a total of MXN 200 million, and we intend to continue paying dividends on a quarterly basis. Also, we will continue buying back more shares, and, once we get to the annual shareholders meeting, management will propose, to our shareholders to cancel some of them to increase, share value, creation for all of us. In closing, we are pleased to report another quarter of strong results.
Importantly, Genomma's cost containment and productivity programs are clearly resonating as we mitigate headwinds and continue to focus on what we can control. Further, our actions to streamline our organization are enabling us to deliver significant shareholder value via enhanced profitability. We are proud to be alongside the best people, the best brands, and the most powerful innovation engine in our industry. With that, we are now ready for your Q&A.
Thank you, Antonio. We will now begin the question and answer session. To ask a question, you may raise your hand using the Raise Your Hand icon located at the bottom of your screen. To withdraw your question, press the same icon at any time. This will be required in order to allow you to turn on your microphone and ask your questions. One moment, please, while we hold for questions. Thank you. Our first question comes from Álvaro García with BTG. Please turn on your microphone to proceed with your question.
Hello, can you hear me? Hello?
Yes, go ahead.
Yes, yes, Alvaro.
Great. I have a question on your capacity utilization for SueroX. I was just wondering if maybe you could provide an update on... I mean, congrats on the very strong growth out of that specific category. If you could provide an update on how you're thinking about your capacity utilization now and production capacity going forward. Thank you.
Yeah. Thank you, Alvaro. Right now, we are at full capacity in our plant. We are running at a rate of 8-9 million bottles per month. We are at full capacity at our Bonafont line, where we are running at a rate of between anything between 10 and 12 million bottles per year, per month, per. And we have for 2024, we are going to be okay from a capacity point of view, because we also have a few contract manufacturers that are helping us with SueroX, but we are going to run out of capacity by the end of 2024, starting of 2025. So we are already. We started a project to increase our capacity, buying a new line for our plant.
This project has been running for 2-3 months already. We went to see some lines in Europe and China, and we have already made the call to purchase a new line that actually Tonio is negotiating. We expect that line to start the process of installation and commissioning by the beginning of next year. With that line installed, which we expect to be running at the beginning of 2025, we have another 4 years of a good capacity for SueroX production. I don't know if that answers the question.
Yeah, it was very clear, very clear. And then just one follow-up also on SueroX. I was wondering, how are you prioritizing new markets? I would love to sort of hear where, what markets, across your territory you think SueroX has the most potential in.
Yeah.
Thank you.
No, obviously, the US is the one with the highest potential. We expanded the branch to the US around two years ago, and it's performing really well. But right now, I think that with the exception of maybe a few small countries, we are already expanded SueroX to every market. So we have SueroX in Chile since one and a half years ago. We have SueroX in Argentina since this, since the beginning of this year. We have SueroX in Peru. We have SueroX in Colombia that is launching in the next quarter. We have SueroX in Ecuador launching this quarter. We have SueroX in Brazil that launched in Q2. Central America launched at the end of the last year, the Caribbean also.
Pretty much all the markets will be selling SueroX by the end of this year.
Great. Thank you very much.
Marco, to thank you, Alvaro, for your question. And, expanding a little bit on Alvaro's question, you know, we've heard from some investors and analysts about share gains or share... You know, what is the our performance in Mexico in terms of share of market? Because there's been a lot of questions about that. I don't know if you would like to share something.
Yeah, we continue to grow market share in Mexico, despite of obviously Mexico being the market where we have been the longest with SueroX, and where the brand has a significant size, of course, but we continue to expand market share. Remember that this category is massive. I mean, we're talking the isotonic category, where Gatorade, Powerade, Electrolit, they all compete in the same category. So we're talking a very, very large category, and our consumer proposition that we believe is superior. No, there's plenty of room to continue to grow in Mexico. Plenty, I mean, plenty of room.
Awesome! That's great color. Thank you very much.
Thank you. Our next question will come from Ana Cecilia Reyes, with Grupo BAL. Please turn your microphone on and proceed with your question.
Hi, can you hear me?
Yes, go ahead.
Yes.
Okay, great. Thank you. Hi, thank you, Marco Antonio, for your presentation. Congratulations, first of all, on your good results. I was reflecting on the announcement about your productivity initiatives, and I was wondering about concentrating from certain number of suppliers to only suppliers for labeling and packaging. Do you feel you might be facing a concentration risk, and in case one of your suppliers fail to deliver, do you have a plan, a plan B, just in case?
Yeah, good question. Thank you, Ana Cecilia. I mean, obviously concentrating has the benefits of better negotiation power. We are, you know, I mentioned in the presentation, but we are getting more than 50% cost reduction, both in packaging and in labels. I don't, I don't think we have a risk of, you know, one of these... First of all, the reason why we are choosing two instead of one is to have a backup. So we have a backup just in case, but we are choosing top-of-the-line suppliers. I mean, these are multinational companies with very strong manufacturing capacity, top-of-the-line machinery, equipment. And I am very confident that, you know, if anything happens, worst case, we move to the second supplier.
But I don't think that we are gonna need to do that.
Great. Great. Thank you.
Thank you. Our next question will be from Rodrigo Alcántara with UBS. Please turn your microphone on and proceed with your question.
Hi, good morning, good afternoon, thanks for taking my question. The first one would be, appreciate the details on the savings from the plant. Just curious, if you can put those numbers in the context of how much of your current production is being internally produced, how much is externally produced? And if you can give us an update on where we stand in terms of export to, you know, the products from the plant, exports to other countries, to what time? And my second question would be, you know, yeah, congrats on the performance on the SueroX, right? Just curious if we can take the discussion on Asepxia to understand a bit better what is driving the decline in sales.
In your view, would it be like a category thing, it's declining, market share losses, or just to understand a bit better what is driving the performance in Asepxia, and what are you doing there to turn around the category? Thank you.
Okay. On the plant, let me provide perspective. So it really varies by brand and by category. So, let me go line by line, okay? So SueroX, as I mentioned in the previous question, we are at full capacity, and less than half of our SueroX is actually produced in the plant, because we have no more capacity, okay? That's why we had to install a second line at Bonafont. The plan is to increase that capacity, adding a line, an incremental line in 2024. That's SueroX. On hair care, we are producing 100% of our Vanart volume is produced in the plant, and around 60%-70% of our Tío Nacho volume is already produced on the plant.
Not only for Mexico, but also for the markets that import from Mexico. So all the Andean region, Chile, they all import from Mexico. Argentina, because of the import restrictions, and Brazil, they produce locally, okay? Then our facial care line is still in the commissioning process, so we're still not producing anything on facial creams. Body creams, 100% of our volume of Goicoechea is produced at the plant for Mexico, and 100% of the volume that we export to other markets is also produced at the plant. Pomada de la Campana, same thing, 100% of the volume in Mexico is produced at the plant, and 100% of the volume that we export to the US is produced at the plant. Okay?
So that's kind of like hair, personal care, and syrups. And then for OTC, 100% of our Next brand is produced at the plant. 100% of our Bengué brand is produced at the plant. 100% of our X-Ray volume is produced at the plant. And as we get the approvals, the GMPs for the licenses that we have that have been approved over the past months, we will continue to move the volume to the plant. That's it. I don't know if that... Is that the perspective you needed, Rodrigo?
Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, that, that was very, very helpful, and thank you for the detail. Just, maybe we can go to the, the Asepxia question would be, would be great. Thank you.
The A- in Asepxia, it's really a challenge. We had a plan to retarget the brands to older consumers that we put in place in Q1 at the end of Q1, but it didn't work. And so now we are redesigning our entire strategy from scratch with that brand. And hopefully, we're gonna have some, you know, good news for the next quarter earnings call, where I can tell you that we're relaunching the brand with new packaging, new communication, new everything. So we're working on that right now. But it's definitely a headache. I mean, we... It's the only brand in our core brands portfolio that it's been challenging to us right now.
Understood. Thank you very much, Marco.
Sure.
This concludes our third quarter's earnings conference call. Thank you for your attention.