Archer Daniels Midland Sees Upbeat 2017
February 07 2017 - 8:05AM
Dow Jones News
By Joshua Jamerson
Archer Daniels Midland Co. said it expects operating conditions
to improve this year after it saw another drop in annual revenue in
2016.
The company on Tuesday also raised its quarterly dividend to 32
cents a share from 30 cents.
Chief Executive Juan Luciano said the company's operations
improved in the quarter, eking out a small increase in revenue for
the three months ending in December, after "working through
difficult market conditions earlier in the year." The company
hasn't posted annual revenue growth since 2012.
Mr. Luciano noted that the agriculture-services business was
helped by results in North America, and the corn processing
operations also had solid results driven by sweeteners and
starches. Commodity traders and processors like Chicago-based ADM
stand to benefit from what U.S. government forecasters have pegged
as a record-breaking haul of corn and soybeans now being reaped by
U.S. farmers.
"We are optimistic about improving results throughout 2017," Mr.
Luciano said.
Over all, the company reported fourth-quarter net income of $424
million, or 73 cents a share, compared with a year-earlier profit
of $718 million, or $1.19 a share. Excluding asset impairments,
restructuring and settlements, among other items, the company said
it earned 75 cents a share.
Revenue edged up 0.3% to $16.5 billion. Analysts polled by
Thomson Reuters expected 77 cents a share on $16.49 billion in
revenue.
Profit from corn processing rose 25% in the fourth quarter and
agricultural services profit rose 8.2%. However, oilseeds
processing operating profit skidded 45% as it recorded a gain from
an asset sale in the year-ago quarter. On an adjusted basis the
company said segment profit rose 4.4%.
Write to Joshua Jamerson at joshua.jamerson@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 07, 2017 08:50 ET (13:50 GMT)
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