Mexico City, April 26 - Bimbo, the world's No. 3 bread maker, reported a 14 percent rise in first-quarter net profit on Thursday, driven by higher sales in its main regions.
The company, which produces around 5,000 food products, earned 783 million pesos ($71 million) in the January-March period, compared with 687 million pesos in the year-ago quarter.
Results exceeded analysts' expectations. According to a Reuters survey, Bimbo's first-quarter earnings were seen at 734 million pesos.
Quarterly revenue rose 10 percent to 17 billion pesos.
Bimbo's Mexico operations reported a 8.3 percent increase in quarterly sales due to higher volumes and prices, while revenue from the United States rose 7.3 percent.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), a key gauge of performance, rose 12 percent to 1.7 billion pesos although Bimbo's profit margin advanced slightly to 10 percent.
Bimbo shares fell 3.25 percent to close at 57.52 pesos on Thursday.