Corteva raises its sales forecasts following strong demand for phytosanitary products, seeds

Aug. 5 (Reuters) – Corteva Inc (CTVA.N) on Thursday raised its net sales forecast for the year after strong demand for crop protection products such as herbicides and insecticides helped the farm business to exceed its estimates for the second trimester.

Corteva also announced a new $ 1.5 billion share buyback program, in addition to an announced $ 1 billion buyback in 2019, which the company plans to complete by the end of 2021.

Shares of the company rose 3.7% to $ 43.00 in extended trading.

Last month, it increased its common stock dividend from 7.7% to 14 cents per share.

The company, which split in 2019 after the Dow Chemical and Dupont merger, has laid off employees and removed some assets to cut costs. Last month, he announced that CEO James Collins Jr would retire, months after activist investor Starboard Value LP sought to oust him. Read more

Corteva forecast net sales in 2021 to be between $ 15.2 billion and $ 15.4 billion, up from a previous estimate of $ 14.6 billion to $ 14.8 billion. Analysts were expecting $ 14.82 billion, according to Refinitiv IBES.

Net sales rose 8.4% to $ 5.63 billion in the second quarter, topping an estimate of $ 5.33 billion, while total sales of crop protection products jumped about 12% to 1, $ 85 billion due to demand for its new products, including Arylex herbicide and Pyraxalt insecticide.

Seed sales increased 7% to $ 3.78 billion in the quarter thanks to increased soybean acreage in North America and higher volumes thanks to more standardized delivery times in the region.

The Wilmington, Delaware-based company said operating income per share reached $ 1.04 billion, or $ 1.40 per share, in the quarter ended June 30, from $ 944 million. dollars, or $ 1.26 per share, last year.

Analysts on average expected earnings of $ 1.26 per share.

Report by Arunima Kumar in Bangalore; Editing by Devika Syamnath and Maju Samuel

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