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Heineken '99 profit buoyant
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March 2, 2000: 5:47 a.m. ET
Dutch brewer beats expectations with 16% profit rise; eyes U.K. acquisition
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LONDON (CNNfn) - Dutch brewer Heineken on Thursday posted a 16 percent rise in net profit for 1999, in line with expectations, and said it was considering a bid to buy the brewing unit of U.K. leisure group Bass.
Europe's largest brewer reported net earnings of 1999 of 516 million euros ($505 million) from 445 million a year earlier, slightly ahead of the 510 million euro consensus forecast among analysts polled by Reuters. Operating profit climbed 21 percent to 799 million euros and sales rose 14 percent to 7.15 billion euros.
Heineken said its European sales rose 14 percent last year, against a backdrop of just 2 percent growth in the global beer market in terms of volume. Heineken's sales got a boost from the first-time inclusion of Polish brewers Zywiec and Brewpole. The company said its U.S. sales rose 11 percent.
Heineken forecast buoyant sales growth in its signature brew as well as leading brands such as Amstel and Murphy's stout.
The brewer's shares fell almost 2 percent in morning trade in Amsterdam as analysts expressed disappointment about the outlook for future corporate moves.
"I'm concerned about strategic steps... on the acquisition front," analyst Anneke Groen at Rabo Securities told Reuters. "How will they integrate Cruzcampo?" Heineken acquired the Spanish brewer last year.
The company said at its earnings press conference Thursday it was "very interested" in the brewing unit of Bass (BASS). The U.K. company has said it is looking to sell the division, which ranks as Britain's second-largest brewing business and is valued by analysts at up to $3 billion.
"Bass would fit perfectly well in Heineken's strategy," said Heineken Chairman Karel Vuursteen. "We are studying what role we could play and what value we could add."
Denmark's Carlsberg has also expressed interest in the Bass brewing business. 
-- from staff and wire reports
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Heineken
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