Astral reaps the benefits of low feed costs
The poultry producer expects a fourfold increase in headline profit in the six months to end-March
Astral Foods expects headline profit to jump by a whopping 410% in the six months to end-March, benefiting from low feed costs and favourable trading conditions. In a matching period a year ago, the poultry producer encountered abnormally high feed costs, which did not occur in the current period. In a preliminary trading update on Monday, Astral said headline earnings per share (HEPS) were expected to leap to R18.16 from R3.56 a year ago. Vunani Securities analyst Anthony Clark said Astral’s resounding profit increase in the second half of the 2017 financial year had followed through into the new financial year. "Once again the business has benefited from lower input costs as well as a structural change in the local poultry industry with less production in the system [after rival Rainbow cut back on its production]." Lower feed costs were a result of SA’s record maize crop in 2017 and a stronger rand, which helped to drag down grain prices. Maize and soya are primary ingredients in...
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