Thai Union Group reported third-quarter sales of 34 billion baht, down 0.9% from the previous quarter, while net profit grew 17.2% quarter-on-quarter to 1.2 billion baht.
Gross profit gained 8.4% to 6.2 billion baht, mainly driven by less pressure from key raw material prices, portfolio rationalisation and the implementation of profit protection measures, said the company.
Quarterly sales continued to ease from last year's high baseline, declining 16.8% year-on-year.
This weighed on net profit for the quarter, down 52.3% from a year earlier, with foreign exchange losses and the continued dilution effect on i-Tail's net profit playing a part.
However, gross profit margin in the third quarter was solid at 18.4%.
Chief executive Thiraphong Chansiri said Thai Union continued to improve its profitability and delivered another strong quarterly gross profit margin, the second-highest ever across all business categories.
"The implementation of the profit protection plan across all our operations has proved effective," he said.
"We continue to focus on strategies to strengthen profitability. Overall, our financials remain strong, which was confirmed when Tris Rating affirmed our company rating and the rating on our senior unsecured debentures at A+."
Frozen and chilled seafood sales increased by 0.9% quarter-on-quarter to 11.6 billion baht.
Gross profit margin in this category continued to recover, rising from 9.6% in the second quarter this year to 12.9% in the third.
This recovery was attributed to strong inventory management and the success of the company's right-sizing strategy to discontinue non-profitable product categories, noted the report.
Meanwhile, value-added business sales grew 19.4% to 2.7 billion baht quarter-on-quarter for the period, with a healthy gross profit margin of 28.9% thanks to the company's focus on higher-margin products, according to the filing.
The petcare business also continued to recover, with quarterly sales increasing 19.1% to 3.8 billion baht.
Gross profit margin in this category was 19.4% as in the US and European markets customers resumed restocking products, while sales prices were higher, noted the report.
Sales in the ambient seafood business declined by 7.5% from the previous quarter to 15.9 billion baht. However, its gross profit margin remained at 20.4%.
Sustainability remained a key focus for Thai Union during the third quarter, with the company announcing SeaChange® 2030, an expansion of its sustainability strategy launched in 2016 to incorporate 11 ambitious goals covering people and the environment.
This strategy is part of its commitment to "Healthy Living, Healthy Oceans", said the company.
The strategy includes the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 42% by 2030, dropping to net zero by 2050.
"Amid an uncertain global economic climate, Thai Union believes our focus and strength in sustainability and innovation will keep driving us forward. We firmly believe that sustainability and innovation will create new opportunities for our business to grow and emerge stronger than ever," said Mr Thiraphong.