Cargill Reports Earnings Quadrupled

Privately held Cargill today reported net earnings of $409 million for its second fiscal quarter, which ended November 30th. That's more than four times the company's reported earnings for the same period a year ago of $100 million.

Cargill, which is a both a producer and trader of a variety of agricultural, financial, and industrial products, also said that revenues totaled $35.2 billion for the quarter, up 6% from a year ago. Four of the five divisions of the company reported year-over-year gains with the exception being the food ingredients and applications group, where excess ethanol capacity and lower profits on some products weighed on earnings.

The company noted that it has devoted more capital spending toward new or improved facilities, rather toward acquisitions. The CEO noted:

We have a record $2.4 billion of large projects under construction in 13 countries. As these facilities come on line, they strengthen Cargill's supply chain, risk management and innovation capabilities.

Cargill's publicly traded competitors include Archer Daniels Midland Co. (NYSE: ADM) and Bunge Ltd. (NYSE: BG), although both trail Cargill's revenues by a substantial amount.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Agriculture, Commodities, Earnings, Food Tagged: ADM, BG