Brown-Forman Corp. reports sales for fiscal 2022, ended April 30, jumped 14% to $3.933 billion but net profit for the full year fell 7% to $838 million, or $1.75 a share, from $903 million, or $1.89 a share. Brown-Forman blamed the earnings decline on higher taxes, which jumped 55% to $276 million from $178 million.
Lawson Whiting noted that all geographic clusters were up, and Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey fueled overall company performance, with sales surging 20%. Premium bourbons, led by Woodford Reserve and Old Forester, weren’t far behind with net sales surging 17%, while the tequila portfolio grew net sales 22%.
Overall, the Jack Daniel’s Family saw reported net sales rise 15%, reflecting “higher volumes and a favorable channel mix shift to the on-premise.” Further gains for the Jack Daniel’s
family of brands were delivered by the continued international launch of Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Apple and the international growth of Jack Daniel’s RTDs. Supply chain disruptions adversely impacted fiscal 2022 results for Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey, Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey, and Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Fire.
Premium bourbons, propelled by Woodford Reserve and Old Forester, delivered 17% reported net sales growth (+17% organic). Gains for Woodford Reserve, the leader by volume and value in the super-premium American whiskey category, were driven by higher volumes and pricing in the United States and higher volumes in the Travel Retail channel. Woodford Reserve’s reported net sales were negatively impacted by supply chain disruptions. Old Forester sustained double-digit reported net sales growth and surpassed 400,000 nine-liter cases in fiscal 2022.
Reported sales in the U.S. grew 10%, developed international markets grew 12%, emerging markets rose 24%, and travel retail — which had been largely shut a year earlier — was soared 65%.
As is true with other companies, results might have been even better except for supply chain challenges. Also hurting: a $52 million one-time non-cash impairment charge for Finland due to Brown-Forman’s halt to operationgs in Russia, a key market for the brand.