The seed producer KWS Saat made significant gains in the past fiscal year thanks to price increases.

The operating result (EBIT) increased by 44 percent to 222.8 million euros in 2022/23 (as of the end of June), as the world's fourth-largest seed company after Bayer, Corteva and Syngenta announced on Wednesday. Net sales climbed by 18 percent to 1.82 billion euros. KWS benefited above all from good business with seeds for sugar beet, cereals and vegetables, but also corn. At 12.2 percent (previous year: 10.1 percent), the operating return on sales (EBIT margin) was above the forecast raised in May.

The bottom line was a profit of 127 million euros, an increase of 18 percent within a year. Shareholders are to receive a ten-cent higher dividend of 90 cents per share. For the current fiscal year 2023/24, KWS Saat is preparing for subdued growth in view of the challenging environment on the agricultural markets. On a comparable basis, the Group expects net sales growth of only three to five percent. According to CFO Eva Kienle, price increases like those in the previous year, which contributed two thirds to growth in 2022/23, are currently not in sight.

The EBIT margin should amount to eleven to 13 percent. "We are aiming to be above eleven percent," she said. In addition to inflation, increasing weather extremes and currency risks in important markets such as South America, Turkey and Eastern Europe are also creating headwinds. KWS shares nevertheless rose significantly on the stock market thanks to the better than expected balance sheet. With a gain of more than six percent, the shares were by far one of the biggest winners in the SDax.

(Report by Patricia Weiß, edited by Myria Mildenberger. If you have any questions, please contact our editorial team at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and the economy) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for companies and markets).)