Regina, Saskatchewan
September 7, 2007
Viterra, the new operating name for Saskatchewan Wheat Pool
Inc., announced its fourth quarter results today reporting $96.0
million in net earnings.
“It has been three months since we began operations as a
combined company. During that time we completed a number of
country asset divestitures, two port terminal divestitures and
refinanced much of its pre-existing debt,” said President and
CEO Mayo Schmidt. “At the same time, our team has been working
diligently to integrate the operations of Agricore United to
build Canada’s leading agribusiness. With the significant
momentum illustrated by this quarter’s financial results,
coupled with the synergies to be achieved, we believe that we
have established an exceptional platform for growth.”
Under generally accepted accounting principles, periods prior to
the acquisition exclude the consolidated results of Agricore
United (“AU”) and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. Accordingly,
results only include two months of earnings attributed to AU for
the period subsequent to the acquisition date of May 29, 2007.
Viterra recently announced its intent to change its financial
year-end from July 31 to October 31 to better align its
reporting period with its business cycle. As a result, Viterra’s
fiscal 2007 reporting period will be a 15-month year ending
October 31, 2007 and the results reported represent the fourth
quarter and twelve month periods ending July 31, 2007.
Highlights include:
- Consolidated sales and
other operating revenues climbed $799.1 million to $1.4
billion for the fourth quarter, up from $601.1 million in
same period last year. The year-to-date consolidated sales
and other operating revenues of $2.6 billion improved by
$1.0 billion over the same twelve-month period of the prior
year.
- Consolidated EBITDA for
the fourth quarter was $149.7 million up from $52.9 million
in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2006. For the twelve months
ended July 31, 2007, consolidated EBITDA was $202.0 million
compared to $77.9 million for the same period last year.
Included in the current quarter and year-to-date results is
$74.3 million of EBITDA contributed by AU for June and July.
- Net earnings from
continuing operations for the fourth quarter this year were
$96.0 million compared to net earnings from continuing
operations of $13.4 million in the prior year. Year-to-date
net earnings from continuing operations for the first twelve
months of fiscal 2007 were $108.0 million versus a net loss
from continuing operations of $6.8 million last year.
- Cash flow prior to working
capital changes of $169.6 million ($1.54 cash flow per
share) for the twelve-month period ending July 31, 2007
improved by $115.8 million over the cash flow prior to
working capital changes of $53.7 million ($0.64 cash flow
per share) for the same period in the prior year. For the
most recent quarter, cash flow prior to working capital
changes was $122.4 million ($0.72 cash flow per share)
compared to $44.5 million ($0.49 cash flow per share) in the
same three-month period of 2006.
- Shipments and margins in
the Grain Handling and Marketing segment were up over the
prior year, contributing to EBITDA of $109.2 million, a
$52.0 million increase over the same period last year. Grain
margins per tonne for the twelve-months ending July 31, 2007
increased to $23.56 per tonne, compared to $20.09 per tonne
in 2006, an increase of 17.3% over the prior year. Shipments
during this period improved by 2.3 million tonnes,
which included 2.0 million tonnes from AU in the most recent
quarter.
- Sales and other revenue
for the Agri-products segment were $810.6 million for the
twelve-month period ending July 31, 2007, which includes
sales of $588.3 million for the fourth quarter of the year.
This compares to $539.0 million in the same twelve-month
period last year ($340.0 million in the fourth quarter of
2006). Improved margins in this segment, a result of a
particularly strong recovery in crop nutrition margins over
the prior year contributed to an increase in EBITDA of $70.0
million for the quarter and $81.2 million for the
twelve-month period. Total Agri-products EBITDA for the
twelve-month period was $106.9 million, which includes $45.6
million attributable to AU in the quarter.
- Restructuring and
integration costs incurred were $9.0 million, primarily a
result of severance, travel, consulting and advisory costs.
- For the twelve-month
period ending July 31, 2007, net earnings were $108.0
million ($0.98 basic and diluted earnings per share)
compared to earnings of $531,000 ($0.01 basic and diluted
loss per share) in the prior year.
Saskatchewan Wheat Pool Inc.,
doing business as Viterra, is Canada's leading agri-business,
with extensive operations and distribution capabilities across
Western Canada, and with operations in the United States and
Japan. The new company is diversified into sales of crop inputs,
services and equipment, grain handling and marketing, livestock
feed, agri-food processing and financial services. These
operations are complemented by value-added businesses and
strategic alliances, which allow Viterra to leverage its pivotal
position between Prairie farmers and destination customers. The
Company's common shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange
under the symbol SWP. |
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