The concentrate on acquisitions comes because the Quebec-based chain behind the Couche-Tard and Circle K banners prepares for its second Change within the CEO area in its nearly 45-year history and is fighting an economic environment through which customers are cash-strapped and fewer willing to spend.
When will the brand new CEO of Couche-Tard take over?
The company announced Wednesday that Hannasch, who has been with the corporate for 10 years, will retire on Sept. 6. When Chief Operating Officer Alex Miller takes the highest job, Hannasch will turn into a special adviser to his successor and the corporate’s chairman and can help with mergers and acquisitions.
The news of Hannasch’s future got here the identical day the corporate held a conference call with analysts about fourth-quarter results. In the period ended April 28, the chain’s net income attributable to shareholders fell to $453 million from $670.7 million a yr earlier.
Irene Nattel, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, described the outcomes as “not a quarter for the history books” but said it was “a better result” than the corporate achieved within the previous quarter.
Couche-Tard attributed the outcomes to lower gross margins within the fuel business, the quarter being every week shorter than the previous yr, and expenses and write-downs related to investments and acquisitions, but said the period was also marked by economic headwinds.
The impact of lower consumer spending
“Without a doubt, this was another challenging quarter with persistent inflation and continued pressure on consumers who are carefully watching their spending,” Hannasch said.
In fuels, he has found that customers are buying smaller quantities per visit. In stores, customers are leaning more towards own-brand products and in categories resembling alcohol, they usually tend to buy cheaper brands quite than premium brands.
Cigarette sales were also “a problem,” he said.
