Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Archer Daniels Midland's quarterly profit up 42%

Unprecedented commodity prices propel revenue to 51% growth
"So you're saying that margins are slipping?" I know a guy who talks like that, he'll immediately glom onto any negative he sees. Yuck.
From MarketWatch:

Archer Daniels Midland Co.'s third-quarter profit increased 42% as a result of sharp increase in prices for grain commodities, the company said Tuesday.

...
The designer of genetically modified crop seed and ethanol producer said quarterly revenue rose 51% to $18.71 billion from $11.38 billion last year.
Higher selling prices for corn, soybeans, wheat and other commodity grains accounted for about 85% of the company's revenue growth, Archer Daniels Midland said.
Analysts polled by FactSet Research had expected, on average, first-quarter earnings of 69 cents a share on sales of $12.9 billion.
Shares of Archer Daniel Midland added 1.8% to $48.25 in premarket trading.

"Volatility in commodity markets presented unprecedented opportunities," said Patricia Woertz, chairman and chief executive....MORE