Agribusiness and food company Bunge Ltd. (BG) Thursday reported sharply higher profit for the first quarter, supported by significant sales growth.
Net income available to Bunge common shareholders surged to $170 million from last year's $84 million. Earnings per share climbed to $1.15 from $0.57.
Earnings from continuing operations rose to $1.21 from $0.81.
Excluding some gains & charges and discontinued operations, net income per common share increased to $1.15 from $0.81.
On average, 9 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of $0.95 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.
Net sales climbed to $14.79 billion from $12.91 billion in the prior year. Analysts expected revenues of $13.99 billion.
Alberto Weisser, Bunge's CEO, said, "We had a solid first quarter. Our agribusiness team performed well, managing risk in a volatile market environment characterized by tight global supplies and challenging Brazilian logistics. We are pleased to see sugar & bioenergy get off to a good start to the year, and that food & ingredients continued its strong performance from the second half of last year.''
The company said it remains confident about 2013, though results would be more back-end weighted than previously expected.
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