Hilton Food Group PLC (LSE:HFG) shares fell 16% after reporting seafood market pressures and some operational challenges, offseting strong performance in its retail meat and convenience businesses.
Revenues rose 7.6% to £2.1 billion in the 26 weeks to 26 June 2025, while adjusted profit before tax was up 3% to £33.6 million on a constant currency basis, while statutory profit before tax fell 4.7% to £24.3 million.
Retail meat and convenience saw volume growth of 3.1% with contributions from all regions amidst a "highly inflationary" pricing environment.
UK seafood was hit by softer demand for white fish, driven by "significant" wholesale price inflation.
The Foppen smoked salmon business saw regulatory restrictions on shipments to the US from the company's Greek facility, resulting in disruptions.
To address the issue, Hilton has temporarily transitioned production to a facility in the Netherlands and is "working closely" with the US regulator to resume production in Greece.
For the full year, the retail meat businesses is expected to keep up its performance, with the comnpany saying its will "continue to address the impact of inflationary trends in white fish and the operational disruption in Foppen".
Full-year results are still expected to be within the range of City analyst profit expectations, which ranged from £76.8 million to £81 million as of this week.
CEO Steve Murrells said: "Whilst we have faced market-driven pressures and some specific operational challenges in seafood, we have responded with agility and continue to have a strong platform in place for future growth."
He said international growth via the NADEC partnership in Saudi Arabia and with Walmart in Canada remain "on schedule", while seasonal preparations are "well underway" for the Christmas trading period.