Tonnellerie Francois Freres SA (EPA:TFF), the French maker of premium oak barrels for wineries and distillers, disclosed a sharp deterioration in full-year results and warned that trading is likely to remain subdued into fiscal 2026/27, prompting a notable share reaction on Thursday.
In Paris trading the stock slid 4.3% to 15.60, materially underperforming the broader CAC 40 index which rose 0.4% on the same session.
For the 12 months ended April 30 the group recorded revenue of 312.7 million, a decline of 26.5% compared with the prior year. Net profit tumbled 71.1% to 9.2 million. Underlying operating performance was also weaker, with EBITDA down 40.4% as demand softened across both the wine and spirits product lines and customers deferred investment amid challenging market conditions.
Company management pointed to a combination of pressures behind the downturn: persistently weak global wine and spirits markets, a poor grape harvest, a cautious stance from customers on spending, the impact of U.S. tariffs that suppressed investment from American wineries, and a weaker U.S. dollar that reduced reported sales when translated to euros.
The spirits segment was especially affected. Revenues linked to the groups bourbon business fell sharply, with barrel volumes down 28%. The Scotch whisky operations also suffered from softer demand and lower prices in cask trading. The wine side of the business continued to experience muted activity across several of its key export markets.
Looking ahead, management said it expects activity to decline again in fiscal 2026/2027, though it anticipates the drop to be less pronounced than in the most recent year, indicating that a recovery in end markets is not imminent. To shore up flexibility the company proposed reducing the annual dividend to 0.40 per share from 0.50.
Market reaction and context
The results and outlook produced a pullback in TFF shares on the Paris market, reflecting investor concern about near-term earnings visibility in the face of continued weakness among wine and spirits producers and traders.