Post Earnings Coverage as Monsanto Sales Climbed 21%

Upcoming AWS Coverage on E.I. du Pont de Nemours

LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / January 9, 2017 / Active Wall St. announces its post-earnings coverage on Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON). The Company disclosed its first quarter fiscal 2017 financial results on January 04, 2017. The US seeds and agrochemicals Company swung to a quarterly profit, driven by higher demand from South America and improved currency. Register with us now for your free membership at: http://www.activewallst.com/register/.

One of Monsanto’s competitors within the Agricultural Chemicals space, E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (NYSE: DD), is expected to report its fiscal quarter ending December 2016 earnings results on January 24, 2017 before market open. AWS will be initiating a research report on DuPont following the releases of its next earnings results.

Today, AWS is promoting its earnings coverage on MON; touching on DD. Get our free coverage by signing up to:

http://www.activewallst.com/registration-3/?symbol=MON

http://www.activewallst.com/registration-3/?symbol=DD

Earnings Reviewed

For the three months ended November 30, 2016, Monsanto, which is being acquired by Germany’s Bayer in a $66 billion deal, reported net sales of $2.65 billion compared to net sales of $2.20 billion in the year earlier same quarter. The Company’s gross profit for the reported quarter increased to $1.3 billion versus the prior year’s comparable period of $0.9 billion. The Company’s sales numbers were above market expectations of $2.30 billion.

For Q1 FY17, Monsanto reported net income of $29 million, or $0.07 per share, which included $0.19 of pending Bayer transaction related costs, compared to net loss of $253 million, or $0.56 per share, a year ago. Excluding certain items, the Company reported earnings of $0.21 per share, swinging to a profit from a loss of $0.11 per share in the year earlier. The results improved on the back of a strong start to business in South America and better currency translation. The Company’s earnings number smashed Wall Street’s expectations of $0.01 per share.

Divisional Performance

During Q1 FY17, Monsanto’s Seeds and Genomics segment, which consists of the global seeds and related traits business, biotechnology platforms and digital agriculture reported net sales of $1.85 billion, compared to sales of $1.40 billion in Q1 FY16. The segment reported gross profit of $1.14 billion, which was higher compared to gross profit of $728 million in the year earlier same quarter.

For Q1 FY17, net sales for the company’s Agricultural Productivity segment, which comprises crop protection products and lawn-and-garden herbicide products, were $802 million, down from revenue of $820 million; reflecting glyphosate pricing headwinds that are expected to continue into Q2 FY17 as the current global pricing is lower than the prior comparable period. The segment’s gross profit declined $119 million from $173 million in the year earlier corresponding quarter.

Balance Sheet

For Q1 FY17, Monsanto’s net cash provided by operating activities was $1.5 billion compared with net cash provided by operating activities of $1.4 billion in Q1 FY16. Net cash required by investing activities for the reported quarter was $327 million compared to $336 million for the year earlier same quarter .The Company’s net cash required by financing activities for Q1 FY17 was $655 million compared to net cash required of $2.4 billion for Q1 FY16 2016. Free cash flow was a source of $1.1 billion for the first three months of FY17 compared to $1 billion for the same period of FY16.

Outlook

For FY17, Monsanto is expecting earnings in the range of $3.97 to $4.45 per share. These earnings are expected to translate into $2.4 billion to $2.8 billion of operating cash flows and $1.4 0 billion to $1.6 billion of free cash flows, after deducting an estimated investing cash flows in the band of $1.0 billion to $1.2 billion. These investing cash flows reflect the planned investment in the Company’s dicamba manufacturing facility and assume the successful sale of the precision agriculture equipment business. On an adjusted basis, FY17 earnings are expected to be in the band of $4.50 to $4.90 per share, reflecting expected growth for the year.

Stock Performance

Last Friday, the stock closed the trading session at $108.13, rising 2.78% from its previous closing price of $105.21. A total volume of 4.05 million shares have exchanged hands, which was higher than the 3-month average volume of 2.05 million shares. Monsanto’s stock price advanced 5.01% in the last three months, 6.41% in the past six months, and 18.13% in the previous twelve months. The Company’s shares are trading at a PE ratio of 36.00 and have a dividend yield of 2.00%.

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