Amsterdam, 15 February 2012 - Heineken N.V. today announced:

• Top-line: Revenue grew 3.6% organically, driven by total consolidated volume growth of 2.1% and revenue per hectolitre growth of 1.5%. Group beer volume increased 3.6%, with growth in all regions driving global market share gains;

• Heineken®: Volume growth of the Heineken® brand in the international premium segment accelerated to 5.4%, once again outperforming the overall beer market;

• EBIT: Organic EBIT (beia) growth of 1.4% as higher revenues, cost savings and increased profit from joint ventures were partly offset by increased marketing expense, higher input costs and capability building investments;

• Net profit: Net profit (beia) grew 9.2% organically to €1,584 million, driven by higher EBIT (beia), lower interest expense and a lower effective tax rate (beia). Reported net profit declined 1.2%, following an exceptional capital gain in 2010;

• Total Cost Management (TCM): TCM delivered pre-tax savings of €178 million in 2011 and total savings of €614 million over the entire three year period; New €500 million cost saving programme (TCM2) launched covering 2012-14;

• Cost synergies: Achieved cost synergies of €94 million in 2011, relating to acquired beer operations of FEMSA, bringing cumulative savings to €136 million;

• Cash flow: Strong free operating cash flow generation of over €2 billion, resulting in a cash conversion ratio of 122%. Net debt/EBITDA (beia) ratio of 2.2x, in line with 2010, despite acquisition activity and accelerated completion of the ASDI share repurchase programme;

• Dividend: Proposed total dividend of €0.83 per share, representing an increase of 9% compared with 2010 (€0.76).

[1] For an explanation of the terms used please refer to the Glossary in the Appendix. Unless otherwise stated, any reference to growth rates used throughout the report is calculated on an organic basis and volume relates to group beer volume.
[2] 2010 restated figures as disclosed in the half year report dated 24 August 2011.
[3] 2011 includes the Galaxy Pub Estate on a 12 month pro-forma basis; 2010 includes the beer operations of FEMSA on a 12 month pro-forma basis.

CEO STATEMENT

Jean-François van Boxmeer, Chairman of the Executive Board and CEO, commented:

 "At the start of 2011, we said that we would significantly increase investment in our brands and innovation to drive long-term value and volume growth. This strategy helped us to deliver organic volume and revenue growth across all five reporting regions for the year. We also grew the bottom-line organically in 2011, with 9.2% net profit (beia) growth.

Our successful activation of the Heineken® brand and investment in global priority brands such as Desperados and Strongbow Gold supported global share gains. Our innovation rate reached 4.1% at the end of 2011 and we are well on our way to achieving our goal of 6% by 2020.

The Heineken® brand continued to outperform the international premium segment and overall beer market, with particularly strong brand performances in Brazil, China, France, Nigeria and Vietnam. Heineken® was also launched in Mexico and India, two attractive growth markets.

2011 also saw the successful completion of our TCM programme. We have now launched TCM2, a new 3-year €500 million cost saving programme. Our free operating cash flow was strong in 2011, exceeding €2 billion, and this will remain a core focus area going forward.

In the year ahead, we will continue to invest in our brands and global business capabilities across the Company. We will also invest in emerging markets to maintain our growth momentum. In Europe, we will continue to leverage our leadership position through our value growth strategy."

2012 FULL YEAR OUTLOOK 

In 2012, HEINEKEN expects to benefit from continued positive growth momentum in higher growth economies and from revenue enhancing initiatives in developed markets. In addition, revenue development will continue to be supported by an ongoing shift towards higher growth economies in Africa, Latin America and Asia.

The Heineken® brand is expected to continue its strong performance in the international premium segment. The 'Open Your World' campaign will be activated around the world. HEINEKEN will also invest in the expansion of its other global brands -  Desperados, Strongbow Gold and Amstel - with further planned introductions in new markets in 2012. In addition, Sol, our Mexican global priority brand, will be launched internationally from 2012. HEINEKEN expects marketing and selling (beia) expense as a percentage of revenue to remain broadly in line with 2011 (12.8%).

HEINEKEN anticipates an approximate 6% increase in input costs per hectolitre, primarily reflecting higher pricing for malted barley. The Company expects to mitigate this impact through the implementation of planned revenue growth initiatives, as well as ongoing efficiency programmes.

Following the successful completion of TCM in 2011, HEINEKEN is introducing a new €500 million cost saving programme (TCM2) that will run from 2012 to 2014 across Supply Chain, Commerce, Wholesale and other functions. TCM2 is focused on driving operational cost efficiencies, and on leveraging HEINEKEN's increasing global scale, primarily enabled through the Global Business Services (GBS) organisation formed in 2010. The initial scope of GBS will require an upfront investment of approximately €200 million through to the end of 2014, of which €32 million has already been incurred in 2011. These will be reported as part of the Company's operating costs.

HEINEKEN has made strong progress on the realisation of its targeted €150 million cost synergies related to the acquired beer operations of FEMSA and expects to achieve this during 2012.

HEINEKEN expects a further organic decline in the number of employees in 2012.

HEINEKEN expects a slight increase in the effective tax rate (beia) in 2012 (2011: 26.8%) and forecasts a slightly higher average interest rate of around 5.5% (2011: 5.2%), primarily reflecting a movement in the currency mix of its debt.

Alongside ongoing business capability investments to leverage its global scale, HEINEKEN continues to focus on capital investment in higher growth markets. The Company plans to increase capital expenditure on property, plant and equipment to approximately €1.25 billion (2011: €800 million) reflecting investment in additional capacity and the renewal and expansion of its returnable bottle fleet in higher growth markets. As a consequence, HEINEKEN expects a cash conversion ratio below 100%.

Total dividend for 2011 

The Heineken N.V. stated dividend policy is a pay-out ratio of 30% to 35% of full-year net profit (beia). The payment of a total cash dividend of €0.83 per share of €1.60 nominal value for 2011 (total dividend 2010: €0.76) will be proposed to the annual meeting of shareholders. If approved, a final dividend of €0.53 per share will be paid on 2 May 2012, as an interim dividend of €0.30 per share was paid on 6 September 2011. The payment will be subject to a 15% Dutch withholding tax. The ex-final dividend date for Heineken N.V. shares will be 23 April 2012.

Investor Calendar Heineken N.V. 

Editorial information:
HEINEKEN is a proud, independent global brewer committed to surprise and excite consumers with its brands and products everywhere. The brand that bears the founder's family name - Heineken® - is available in almost every country on the globe and is the world's most valuable international premium beer brand. The Company's aim is to be a leading brewer in each of the markets in which it operates and to have the world's most valuable brand portfolio. HEINEKEN wants to win in all markets with Heineken® and with a full brand portfolio in markets of choice. The Company is present in over 70 countries and operates more than 140 breweries with volume of 214 million hectolitres of group beer sold. HEINEKEN is Europe's largest brewer and the world's third largest by volume. HEINEKEN is committed to the responsible marketing and consumption of its more than 200 international premium, regional, local and specialty beers and ciders. These include Amstel, Birra Moretti, Cruzcampo, Desperados, Dos Equis, Foster's, Heineken, Newcastle Brown Ale, Ochota, Primus, Sagres, Sol, Star, Strongbow, Tecate, and Zywiec. Our leading joint venture brands include Cristal, Kingfisher, Tiger and Anchor. In 2011, revenue totaled €17.1 billion and EBIT (beia) was €2.7 billion. The number of people employed is around 70,000. Heineken N.V. and Heineken Holding N.V. shares are listed on the Amsterdam stock exchange. Prices for the ordinary shares may be accessed on Bloomberg under the symbols HEIA NA and HEIO NA and on the Reuter Equities 2000 Service under HEIN.AS and HEIO.AS. Most recent information is available on HEINEKEN's website: www.theHEINEKENcompany.com.

Disclaimer:
This press release contains forward-looking statements with regard to the financial position and results of HEINEKEN's activities. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements. Many of these risks and uncertainties relate to factors that are beyond HEINEKEN's ability to control or estimate precisely, such as future market and economic conditions, the behaviour of other market participants, changes in consumer preferences, the ability to successfully integrate acquired businesses and achieve anticipated synergies, costs of raw materials, interest-rate and exchange-rate fluctuations, changes in tax rates, changes in law, pension costs, the actions of government regulators and weather conditions. These and other risk factors are detailed in HEINEKEN's publicly filed annual reports. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which are only relevant as of the date of this press release. HEINEKEN does not undertake any obligation to release publicly any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of these statements. Market share estimates contained in this press release are based on outside sources, such as specialised research institutes, in combination with management estimates.