Bayer Shares Slide on Lower 4Q Net Profit; Weedkiller Claims Rose in 2022
28 Febbraio 2023 - 10:26AM
Dow Jones News
By Cecilia Butini
Bayer AG shares fell on Tuesday after the company said
fourth-quarter net profit fell, noting that it had a higher number
of lawsuits related to its allegedly harmful weedkiller Roundup in
2022 than in 2021.
At 0830 GMT, shares traded 4% down at EUR56.15.
The German agricultural and pharmaceutical company posted net
profit of 611 million euros ($648.3 million) for the final quarter
of 2022, down from EUR1.16 billion the year prior, and missing a
company-provided consensus that had expected EUR981 million.
However, sales rose in the period.
Bayer said the number of weedkiller claims now stands at
154,000, of which 109,000 have been settled. A year ago, when it
reported 2021 results, the company had said that the claims were
138,000, of which about 107,000 had been settled.
It added that as of December 2022, the company had a provision
of $6.4 billion to settle future and existing glyphosate
claims.
For the year ahead, the company expects earnings to be lower due
to high inflation-driven cost increases, though sales are expected
to grow, reaching a range of EUR51 billion to EUR52 billion in the
year.
Ebitda before special items is expected to be in the range of
EUR12.5 billion to EUR13 billion.
According to Citi analyst Peter Verdult, the guidance is
conservative and reflects the company's upcoming chief executive
change, Verdult said in a note. "With a new CEO arriving mid-year,
we believe Bayer has applied a touch of conservatism leaving risks
to the upside," he says.
Write to Cecilia Butini at cecilia.butini@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 28, 2023 04:11 ET (09:11 GMT)
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