Seaboard milling unit earnings ease in Q3

Seaboard Corp. posted operating income of $31 million in its Commodity Trading and Milling (CT&M) segment during the third quarter ended Sept. 30, down 6% from $33 million in the same quarter a year ago.

Seaboard said the decrease in operating income primarily reflected lower margins related to the decline in sales prices.

Net sales for the segment during the most recent quarter totaled $1.12 billion, down 11% from $1.25 billion in the same period a year ago. The decrease primarily reflected lower average sales prices of commodities sold, which decreased $212 million during the most recent quarter, Seaboard said.

In an Oct. 29 filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Seaboard said it invested $373 million in property, plant and equipment in the first nine months of fiscal 2024, including biogas recovery projects in the Pork segment and installment payments on vessels under construction in the Marine segment. For the remainder of 2024, Seaboard said management has budgeted capital expenditures totaling $165 million.

Overall, Seaboard in the third quarter sustained a loss of $149 million, which compared with income of $126 million, equal to $108.55 per share on the common stock, in the same period a year ago. Net sales were $2.22 billion, down 7.2% from $2.39 billion in the same period a year ago.