THE CONTEXT


Food Empire has come a long way since it got listed on the Singapore Exchange back in 2000.

Fast forward 25 years and the stock is having a stellar run — it’s up 162% year to date, and things are looking better than ever.

In July, its market cap crossed the $1-billion level for the first time. This company that sells 3-in-1 coffee in several markets around the world now is valued at S$1.37 billion.


maccoffee variants

• On top of the soaring stock price, investors were rewarded with Food Empire's first-ever interim dividend of 3.0 cents per share for 1H2025.

It's a clear sign the management  is not only confident in its cash flow but is also more commited than ever to rewarding investors.

See its dividend track record:

FY

Dividend (cents)

Notes

2021

2.2

Final dividend (incl special 0.6 cent dividend)

2022

4.4

Final dividend

2023

10.0

Final dividend (incl special 5 cent dividend)

2024

8.0

Final dividend (incl special 2.0 cent dividend)

 

• Analysts have recognized the potential of the stock. They turned even more bullish after a visit to Food Empire's operations in Vietnam last week.

• See excerpts of 3 reports below
 ... 

 


Excerpts from UOB KH report
Analysts: John Cheong & Heidi Mo

Site Visit In Vietnam Reinforces Our Positive View; Raise Target Price By 10%


Site visit highlights significant improvement vs two years ago. 

FOOD EMPIRE

Share price: 
$2.59

Target: 
$3.00


Food Empire Holdings (FEH) hosted a site visit to its Vietnam operations on 10-11 Sep 25, showcasing the scale-up of its local manufacturing facilities and distribution network.

Compared with two years ago, we observed notable improvements in operating efficiency and capacity.

Staff strength has more than quadrupled from 500 to 2,300 employees, reflecting higher demand and scale.

Moving forward, FEH plans to further enhance operating efficiency by 30% over the next 12 months through more automation.



Strong execution evident in market share gains and revenue growth. MacCoffee, FEH’s flagship coffee brand in Vietnam, increased its market share by 2ppt to 15% in 2024.

Revenue from Vietnam surged >30% yoy to US$76m, more than 3x the industry growth rate.

This stems from FEH’s ability to localise its product range and leverage marketing initiatives that resonate with traditional retail channels, where the bulk of Vietnamese consumers still shop.

CafePho icedmilkcoffee
"New products such as ready-to-drink (RTD) Café PHO iced milk coffee have been well received, while its instant bubble tea, launched two years ago, continues to gain traction as a niche category."
-- UOB KH

Expect above-industry growth via regular new product launches and unique marketing initiatives. FEH Vietnam is on track to achieve another record year with >30% revenue growth to US$100m in 2025.

Growth will be supported by two upcoming RTD launches in 2026, continued innovation across instant beverages, and a deepened presence in traditional retail channels.

With the RTD beverage market in Vietnam (around US$5b) about 10x the instant beverage segment (around US$500m), FEH has significant headroom to sustain above-industry growth.

Valuation/Recommendation
Maintain BUY with a 10% higher PE-based target price of S$3.00 (S$2.73 previously), pegged to a higher 18.7x 2026F PE (17x 2026F PE previously), or 1.5SD above FEH’s long-term mean.

At 16.4x 2026F PE, FEH still trades at a deep 34% discount to regional peers’ average of 24.8x.

For UOB KH report, click here. 



Sudeep TWC 2016Sudeep Nair has been CEO since 2012 while Executive Chairman Tan Wang Cheow is the founder of the Group and took the company public in 2000.

DBS Research says ...

 
FEH hosted a two-day analyst visit to Ho Chi Minh City, which included a factory tour, store checks across traditional trade outlets, and meetings with the local management team.

We identified three key drivers of FEH’s success in Vietnam.

° First, a culture that rewards innovation, which has led to tangible efficiency gains at the factory level, through multiple process improvements.

° Second, the company directly employs a large and growing sales force, enabling strong relationships with traditional trade channels. FEH has also introduced customer acquisition representatives focused on product trials and increasing sales per outlet.

° Third, strong brand equity built on taste and brand awareness translates to prominent in-store visibility for Café Pho.

Despite per-serving prices that are about 41% higher than the local G7 competitor brand, Café Pho brand continues to sustain volume growth.

For DBS report, click here.

revenue8.25

Maybank Kim Eng says ...


Maintain BUY with a higher TP of SGD2.92

We re-visited FEH’s Vietnam operation and facilities and came away more positive. 


JarickSeet3.18Jarick Seet, analystWe believe that FEH Vietnam is on track to deliver an estimated USD100m of revenue in FY25E and has also become the third-largest instant coffee player in Vietnam.

It also plans product innovations to grow revenue in new segments, which we are optimistic about.

All in all, we believe Russia will continue to contribute an increasingly smaller proportion of revenue in coming years as FEH expands in Southeast Asia (SEA), India and Kazakhstan.

Maintain BUY with a higher TP of SGD2.92, based on a higher 19x (from 17x) FY25E P/E. We did not make any changes to our estimates.


Full Maybank report here.




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