The company said velocity gains and pricing are behind the “strong start” of 2023.
The New Jersey-based cat and dog food company saw a substantial rise of 26.7%, reaching $167.5 million (€151.61M). In Q1 2022, Freshpet hit $132.2 million (€119.7M) in revenue.
“We are off to a very strong start to 2023 behind our recently launched Fresh Future plan. That plan promised a renewed focus on improving profitability while continuing to drive strong growth,” commented Freshpet’s CEO, Billy Cyr.
Gross profit totaled $50.8 million (€45.98M) or 30.3% of net sales, a slight decrease against the same period of last year (33.9%).
The manufacturer stated that the dip could be explained by the increased depreciation expense from the expansion in capacity and increased share-based compensation.
Furthermore, the report noted a net loss of $24.8 million (€22.45M) in Q1 compared to $17.5 million (€15.84M) in 2022.
Customer behavior
Amid economically challenging times, Freshpet emphasized that its “heavy/super heavy” customers – those who spent at least $40 in the most recent 10 weeks – experienced an increasing trend in the past 5 years.
The company expects this type of consumer to represent 3.34 million at the end of 2023, an increase of 18% and an average spend of $243.87 (€221.70).
Freshpet’s products are now available across 25,650 stores, an increase from 25,281 in 2022.
$750 million
Freshpet forecasts that it will reach net sales of around $750 million (€682M) by the end of 2023.
It also expects an increase in volume due to consumption growth this year and an increase of 25% in investment in media campaigns.
Investment research firm Zacks commented: “It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and current fiscal year change in the days ahead.” Analysts agree with the company’s net sales prediction for 2023.
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