Agricultural News
Strong Herbicide Sales Boost Monsanto's First-Quarter Profits
Wed, 08 Jan 2014 13:12:32 CST
Monsanto Company delivered on-track results for the first quarter of its fiscal year as stronger herbicide sales offset a decline in the company's seed sales, according to its recently-released quarterly report. The company previewed a strong U.S. order book and noted that it is on track to deliver its largest-ever soybean launch with an expected three million acres of Intacta RR2 PRO™.
"The first quarter demonstrated that our business performance is squarely on track with several key milestones and that we have the right growth strategy in place," said Hugh Grant, chairman and chief executive officer for Monsanto. "The strength in our business is also seen in the record number of research and development advancements this year. It's the innovation in our pipeline that's going to define what's next for our industry and help deliver on our commitment to bring additional opportunity for farmers around the world."
The report noted net sales in the first quarter of fiscal 2014 for Monsanto's Agricultural Productivity segment increased $283 million, reflecting the continued benefit of a favorable marketplace environment. The company posted a gross profit on net sales of 50%, outpacing last year's performance of 48%.
Monsanto's first-quarter seed and related agricultural trait sales of $1.7 billion were five percent less than the previous year. Corn seed sales were down seven percent, but soybean sales jumped 16 percent. Herbicide sales that were up by almost 25% over the previous year boosted the company's profitability.
The company's quarterly report affirms that it is on track to return $5 to $5.20 per share in fiscal year 2014.
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