Here’s What to Expect from FMC’s Next Earnings Report

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based FMC Corporation (FMC) is an agricultural sciences company that advances farming through innovative and sustainable crop protection technologies. Valued at $6.3 billion by market cap, FMC provides crop protection, plant health, and professional pest and turf management products. The company is set to announce its fourth-quarter results after the stock market closes on Tuesday, Feb. 4.

Ahead of the event, analysts expect FMC to report a non-GAAP profit of $1.65 per share, up a staggering 54.2% from $1.07 per share reported in the year-ago quarter. The company’s earnings surprise history is mixed. It surpassed analysts’ bottom-line estimates thrice over the past four quarters while missing on one other occasion. Its adjusted EPS for the last reported quarter surged 56.8% year-over-year to $0.69, exceeding Wall Street’s expectations by 40.8%.

However, for the full fiscal 2024, FMC’s adjusted EPS is projected to decline 11.6% year-over-year to $3.34. While in fiscal 2025, its earnings are expected to rebound 36.5% year-over-year to $4.56 per share.

FMC stock has plummeted 18.3% over the past 52 weeks, substantially underperforming the Materials Select Sector SPDR Fund’s (XLB) marginal drop and the S&P 500 Index’s ($SPX) 24.4% gains during the same time frame.

FMC stock prices soared 10.7% in the trading session after the release of its robust Q3 results on Oct. 29. Driven by strong volume growth, FMC’s North America sales surged 47.6% year-over-year to $235.5 million and Latin America sales grew by a notable 8.2% year-over-year to $504.1 million, which more than offset revenue declines in EMEA and Asia. This translated into an 8.5% growth in total revenues to approximately $1.1 billion. However, due to lower pricing, its gross margin contracted 255-basis points compared to the year-ago quarter to 36.3% leading to a modest 1.4% growth in gross profit to $386.4 million.

On a more positive note, FMC has observed a massive improvement in cash flows, its operating cash flows for the past three quarters grew to $308.8 million up from negative $618.2 million reported during the same time frame in the previous year. Furthermore, driven by robust sales of its new products and cost benefits from its restructuring program, FMC expects to deliver significant earnings growth in the coming quarters.

The consensus opinion on FMC stock is moderately bullish, with an overall “Moderate Buy” rating. Out of the 17 analysts covering the stock, six recommend “Strong Buy,” one advises “Moderate Buy,” nine suggest “Hold,” and one advocates a “Moderate Sell” rating. Its mean price target of $66.80 indicates a staggering 32.8% upside potential from current price levels.

On the date of publication, Aditya Sarawgi did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here. More news from Barchart

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