Monsanto (MON) Tops Q4 EPS by 61c, Offers Outlook

Monsanto (NYSE: MON) reported Q4 EPS of $0.20, $0.61 better than the analyst estimate of ($0.41). Revenue for the quarter came in at $2.7 billion versus the consensus estimate of $2.53 billion.

Outlook

Given the pending combination with Bayer, the company will not provide financial guidance for fiscal year 2018, but instead will highlight key guideposts to consider. This includes growth drivers in the Seeds and Genomics segment such as adoption and pricing of INTACTA RR2 PROTM soybeans in South America; continued adoption of Roundup Ready 2 Xtend® soybeans, and price and share gains from the launch of new corn hybrids around the world. In addition, the company expects to reach 50 million paid acres globally for the Climate FieldViewTM platform, and growth from the multi-crop U.S. launch of NemaStrikeTM Technology. The company also anticipates lower planted corn acres in Brazil and challenging commodity pricing for corn around the globe.

In Ag Productivity, the pricing for glyphosate is expected to improve, at least through the first quarter of the fiscal year, and volumes of XtendiMax® Herbicide with VaporGrip® Technology are expected to expand.

The company expects that its tax rate will normalize and that contributions from strategic portfolio management will likely fall below the roughly $350 million average annual pre-tax contribution from the last three years.

Finally, in fiscal year 2018, the company also anticipates completing its restructuring and cost savings initiative that began in fiscal year 2015, with the expectation that S,G&A and R&D expenses in fiscal year 2018 will be relatively flat year-over-year compared to 2017. Upon completion of the initiative, the company expects to realize nearly $500 million in annual savings as compared to its fiscal year 2015 baseline.

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Monsanto (MON) click here.

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