Ahold Delhaize’s Q4 2024 results show global sales growth and continued focus on omnichannel and personalization strategies. The company plans to grow in 2025 with store expansions, technology investments, and a focus on sustainability. Projections include 4% operating margin and €2.7B capex.

Table of Content

Q4 2024 Performance Key Highlights Future Outlook
 

Q4 2024 Performance

Global Net Sales: €23.3 billion, up 0.6% at constant exchange rates.

U.S. Net Sales: €13.9 billion, a decline of 0.6% at constant exchange rates.

Comparable sales excluding gasoline in the U.S. increased by 1.4%, driven by continued growth in pharmacy sales.

Online Sales: Global Online sales grew by 5.8% in Q4, fueled by double-digit growth in online grocery.

Online Sales US: Declined by 0.9% in constant currency, negatively impacted by 11.8 percentage points due to the divestment of FreshDirect.

Retail Media Growth

  • Continued expansion of retail media networks (RMN) through Gambit technology.
  • Partnered with Inmar Intelligence to enhance personalization, delivering over 12 billion personalized offers across U.S. brands.

Brand Assortment

  • 39% own-brand food penetration, with own-brand sales in the U.S. outpacing the rest of the store in both dollars and units.

Stores and Remodels

  • The GIANT Company opened a new store in Philadelphia, with two more in the works for 2025.
  • 95% of stores remodeled to reflect the current brand décor packages.

Strategic Initiatives

  • Focused investments in omnichannel capabilities, expanding customer loyalty, and accelerating new store openings and remodels.
  • Scaling Prism e-commerce platform and Retail Media Technology (Gambit).

Sustainability Impact 

  • 36% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to 2018 
  • 35% reduction in food waste per food sales
  • 10% reduction in virgin own-brand primary plastic packaging compared to 2021
 

Key Highlights 

Personalizing the Shopper Journey

Ahold Delhaize is intensifying its growth strategy in the U.S. market by focusing on personalizing the shopper journey. The grocer’s partnership with Inmar Intelligence, as highlighted in our previous article, “How Ahold Delhaize is Strengthening Omnichannel Capabilities with Strategic Partnerships,” underscores this shift. By prioritizing digital coupons and personalized offers, Ahold Delhaize aligns with Doppio's research, “State of Grocery Personalization: High Potential, Largely Untapped,” which shows a 6.2% average increase in conversion due to personalized digital experiences based on shopper segmentation and targeting. This segmentation approach is projected to unlock $12.3 billion in incremental sales. As a result, Ahold Delhaize has made continued investments in personalization, delivering over 12 billion personalized offers in 2024, solidifying its commitment to a data-driven, customer-centric strategy.

Digital Commerce Profitability: Leveraging Partnerships for Growth

Despite a 0.9% decline in U.S. online sales due to the divestment of FreshDirect, Ahold Delhaize's strategic partnership with DoorDash has led to a 20% increase in orders compared to Q3. Additionally, optimizations in the U.S. fulfillment model, combined with the DoorDash collaboration, resulted in a 40% increase in e-commerce orders in Q3 compared to Q2. This growth highlights a significant shift in consumer behavior, with U.S. customers increasingly seeking convenient delivery options. This trend is further validated by Doppio's research, which found that while grocers are reducing their reliance on third-party delivery apps, they are projected to still capture 14.1% of delivery sales through these platforms, as indicated by the State of Digital Grocery: Evolve to Improve Profitability report.

Ahold Growth Strategy 2025 

Ahold is poised for significant growth in 2025, with plans to open nearly 10 new stores and remodel over 220 existing locations. Additionally, the company is preparing to implement Prism technology at Hannaford and Food Lion, alongside the integration of Gambit retail media technology. These technological advancements align closely with Doppio's State of Digital Grocery: In-Store Media Monetization research, which highlights the tremendous potential of retail media networks (RMNs) in the U.S. grocery sector, valued at $8.5 billion. The report also reveals a 38% increase in shopper engagement with in-store media and notes that 93% of CPG brands seek to integrate both digital and in-store engagement. This trend of in-store media engagement becomes particularly relevant as Ahold’s own brand sales in the U.S. outpace the rest of the store in both dollars and units, suggesting that the integration of digital and in-store media strategies is driving customer interest and sales growth.

 

Future Outlook 

Looking ahead to 2025, Ahold Delhaize projects an underlying operating margin of around 4%, with mid- to high-single-digit underlying EPS growth. The company expects free cash flow of at least €2.2 billion and plans gross capital expenditures of approximately €2.7 billion. These investments will focus on accelerated remodeling, new store growth, distribution network expansion, and technology infrastructure modernization.