Bioceres Crop Solutions reports 1Q24 Financial and Operational Results: Revenues at $116.6 million, and adjusted EBITDA at $16.3 million

Bioceres Crop Solutions Corp. (Bioceres) (NASDAQ: BIOX), a leader in the development and commercialization of productivity solutions designed to regenerate agricultural ecosystems while making crops more resilient to climate change, announced financial results for the first quarter ended September 30, 2023. Financial results are expressed in U.S. dollars and are presented in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards. All comparisons in this announcement are year-over-year (YoY), unless otherwise noted.

FINANCIAL & BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTS

• Total revenues in 1Q24 were $116.6 million, driven by post-drought recovery at the start of the Argentine summer crop season, and continued global expansion. Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was $16.3 million.

  
  

• HB4 wheat harvest and soybean planting beginning in Latin America. HB4 wheat harvest underway in Argentina, with favorable preliminary results compared to non-HB4 varieties, in a season that was still affected by drought. By contrast, soybean planting is beginning under more favorable soil moisture conditions.

  
  

• US Patent awarded for UHC^® technology, a new gold standard in biological nitrogen fixation. Rate reduction with extended pre-inoculation period enables chemical substitution and new seed applied innovations.

  
  

• Completed construction of a new state-of-the-art adjuvant production plant in Londrina, Brazil, which is strategically positioned to expand Bioceres’ footprint in the high-growth Brazilian market.

MANAGEMENT REVIEW

Mr. Federico Trucco, Bioceres’ Chief Executive Officer, commented: ″The first quarter of fiscal 2023 was a record-setting quarter in which we nearly doubled revenues as compared to the prior year period. Part of our growth during 1Q23 resulted from anticipated 2Q23 sales, as weather conditions were quickly deteriorating in our main LATAM market, which ultimately positioned us to mitigate part of the effects of what became a historical drought, extending through the next three quarters. With rain patterns now normalized and plantings in our main markets progressing at full force, we have regained our momentum, as reflected in our 1Q24 financial performance – momentum we expect will accelerate in subsequent quarters.

On the HB4 front, the wheat harvest has started in northern Argentina with very favorable results for HB4 materials, in an otherwise difficult season for the crop. Soy plantings are advancing favorably with good moisture conditions in our targeted regions. Our Generation HB4 Program is currently running at 150% of prior season acreage, with a 6x increase in Brazil.

An important milestone this quarter was the granting of our UHC® technology patent by the USPTO. This technology sets the new gold standard in biological nitrogen fixation for legumes, and further strengthens our leadership position in this important seed treatment category. The rate reduction achieved with our UHC® inoculants adds to other groundbreaking improvements in our Rizoderma (biofungicide), Rinotec (bioinsecticides/nematicides) and UBP (biostimulant) platforms of seed applied technologies, freeing-up more than 50% of the carrying capacity of seeds for new innovations or incremental nutrient loads.″

Mr. Enrique Lopez Lecube, Bioceres´ Chief Financial Officer, added ″As we kick-started the new fiscal year, we knew the comparison to last year´s first quarter would be a tough one. As comforting as it was to have an agile salesforce to act proactively in the face of a looming drought last year, we would much rather have normalized weather conditions like the ones we see today in Argentina and are enthused by the continued growth we see from new product categories in other markets. This quarter was marked by the recovery of adjuvant sales, exciting growth from our UBP biostimulants platform, margin expansion from the bioprotection portfolio and – though not as high as last year – continued momentum from micro-beaded fertilizers sales that had good pre-season sales in 4Q23. Looking ahead, we expect our business in Argentina to outperform and believe there is an outsized opportunity for the continuous growth of our biologicals portfolio in attractive geographies such as the EU, US and Brazil.″

KEY FINANCIAL METRICS

(In millions of U.S. dollars, unless where otherwise stated)

Table 1: 1Q24 Key Financial Metrics

1Q24 Summary: Total revenues in 1Q24 were $116.6 million, driven by post drought recovery in Argentina as the summer crop season got underway, and continued expansion in other target markets. In Crop Protection, high margin adjuvants experienced a strong recovery from previous quarters, while lower margin product sales were strategically exited, resulting in an overall segment sales decline but gross profit improvement. In Seed and Integrated Products, seed treatment pack sales were slightly lower than the previous fiscal year, but overall segment revenues increased. The increase was driven by sales of first-generation HB4 wheat inventories, commercialized as grain to selected processors operating under the Generation HB4 program. Gross profit for the category was practically constant due to lower margin wheat grain sales. Crop Nutrition saw solid performance in the quarter, although higher sales of biostimulants and sustained demand for micro-beaded fertilizers were overshadowed by last year´s extraordinary micro-beaded fertilizer performance on higher fertilizer prices and anticipated sales. Profit sharing from the agreement with Syngenta, for which compensation has been accrued in 3Q23, also contributed to the year-over-year decline. Adjusted EBITDA for 1Q24 was $16.3 million.

For a full version of Bioceres first quarter 2024 earnings release, click here.