Monsanto Company
(
MON
)
will be reporting its third-quarter 2012 financial result on
Wednesday, June 27, 2012.
The current Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings per share is
$1.59, representing an annualized growth of 25.93%.
With respect to earnings surprises over the trailing four
quarters, Monsantooutperformedthe Zacks Consensus Estimate in all
four quarters. Average earnings surprise was 15.16%, implying
that the company outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by the
same magnitude over the last four quarters.
Second Quarter 2012 Highlights
On April 5,
Monsanto Company
posted strong financial results for the second quarter of fiscal
2012 with an earnings per share from ongoing business of $2.28
($2.24 on an as-reported basis), surging much above $1.87 recorded
a year ago. The results exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate of
$2.12.
The company generated revenues of $4,748 million, up from $4,131
million registered in the year-ago quarter. The revenue exceeded
the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4,608 million based on improved
sales across segments, especially Seeds and Genomics.
During the quarter, gross margin was recorded at approximately
57%, up slightly from 56% recorded in the year-ago comparable
quarter.
Agreement of Estimate Revisions
In the last 30 days, out of twelve analysts, eleven increased
the company's earnings per share estimates for the third quarter of
2012, while no one decreased the same. For fiscal 2012, of the
fifteen analysts, thirteen increased their earnings per share
estimate, whereas none decreased the same. Besides, twelve out of
sixteen analysts increased estimate for fiscal 2013.
Magnitude of Estimate Revisions
Estimates over the last 30 days increased from $1.30 per share
to $1.59 for the third quarter of 2012.
Estimate for fiscal 2012 increased from $3.56 to $3.70 over the
last 30 days and estimate for fiscal 2013 increased from $4.11 to
$4.25. These estimates represented a year-over-year growth of
25.05% and 14.72% for 2012 and 2013, respectively.
Our Take
We are optimistic on the company's improved U.S. Business,
especially in corn traits. Moreover, continuous increase in
production supported by the company's innovation and technology
upgradation look promising. We believe volume and a mix benefit
across segments will capture profitability in the upcoming
results.
Missouri-based Monsanto Company, together with its subsidiaries,
is a leading global provider of agricultural products for farmers
in the United States and internationally. Monsanto's biotechnology
research and rich product pipeline give tough competition to its
peers, such as
The Dow Chemical Company
(
DOW
),
Syngenta AG
(
SYT
),
The Scotts Miracle-Gro Co
(
SMG
), and
BASF
(
BASFY
).
We currently maintain a long-term Neutral recommendation on the
stock. Monsanto has a Zacks #2 Rank, which translates into a
short-term Buy rating (1-3 months).
BASF SE (BASFY): Free Stock Analysis Report
DOW CHEMICAL (DOW): Free Stock Analysis Report
MONSANTO CO-NEW (MON): Free Stock Analysis
Report
SCOTTS MIRCL-GR (SMG): Free Stock Analysis
Report
SYNGENTA AG-ADR (SYT): Free Stock Analysis
Report
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