EQS-News: Strong performance in Food & Beverage Solutions – full-year Group forecast raised
EQS-News: AGRANA Beteiligungs-Aktiengesellschaft / Key word(s): Half Year
Results
Strong performance in Food & Beverage Solutions – full-year Group forecast
raised
09.10.2025 / 07:30 CET/CEST
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
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Strong performance in Food & Beverage Solutions – full-year Group forecast
raised
• Group outlook for 2025|26 financial year: EBIT now expected to
increase to a range of about € 45 to 60 million
• Earnings declined significantly in the first half of the year due to a
persistently challenging starch and sugar market
In the first half of the 2025|26 financial year (the six months ended 31
August 2025), AGRANA, the food and industrial goods group, registered a
reduction of 50.5% in operating profit (EBIT) to € 28.0 million. The
Group’s revenue decreased by 9.1% to € 1,691.6 million (H1 previous year:
€ 1,861.7 million). Nevertheless, thanks to very good second-quarter
results in the Food & Beverage Solutions business, AGRANA has raised its
forecast for the year and now expects a significant increase in Group EBIT
of between 10% and 50%. EBIT is now projected to be in the range of about
€ 45 to 60 million for the 2025|26 financial year; this takes into account
that the outlook for the Agricultural Commodities & Specialities business
(the Starch and Sugar segments) remains subdued.
AGRANA Chief Executive Officer Stephan Büttner says: „We are still in a
challenging transformation phase as we implement NEXT LEVEL, our new Group
strategy. While the results in Food & Beverage Solutions were very
positive, the operating performance in the Sugar and Starch businesses was
unsatisfactory. Additionally, as announced, non-recurring expenses
(primarily staff costs) were recognised in the Sugar segment as part of
the restructuring in Austria and the Czech Republic. The strong earnings
contribution from the Food & Beverage Solutions segment not only was a
stabilising factor for Group EBIT in the first half of the year, but also
forms the main basis for our updated EBIT forecast for the full year
2025|26.”
AGRANA Group financial results, first half of 2025|26 (1 March – 31 August
2025)
€ million, except % H1 H1 Q2 Q2
2025|26 2024|25 2025|26 2024|25
Revenue 1,691.6 1,861.7 811.4 917.4
EBITDA[1][1] 106.1 107.6 53.7 51.8
Operating profit before exceptional items
and results of equity-accounted joint 52.2 55.3 26.6 25.3
ventures
Share of results of equity-accounted joint –3.4 3.2 –1.8 1.1
ventures
Exceptional items –20.8 –1.9 –2.5 –2.1
Operating profit [EBIT] 28.0 56.6 22.3 24.3
EBIT margin 1.7% 3.0% 2.7% 2.6%
Profit for the period 1.1 23.5 9.1 7.4
Investment[2][2] 44.7 47.1 28.7 28.7
The Group’s net financial items amounted to an expense of € 19.7 million,
compared to an expense of € 19.4 million in the year-earlier period. The
slight increase was due primarily to a marked deterioration in currency
translation differences that outweighed a significant improvement in net
interest expense. After an income tax expense of € 7.1 million,
corresponding to a tax rate of 85.5% (H1 previous year: 36.8%), profit for
the period was € 1.1 million (H1 previous year: € 23.5 million). Net debt
as of 31 August 2025 decreased by € 28.6 million from the 28 February 2025
year-end level, to € 407.8 million. The gearing ratio at the quarterly
balance sheet date was a steady 35.5% (28 February 2025: 35.5%).
Food & Beverage Solutions (FBS)
€ million, except % H1 H1 Q2 Q2
2025|26 2024|25 2025|26 2024|25
Revenue 859.1 824.5 415.0 408.9
Operating profit [EBIT] 68.0 50.4 31.6 23.4
EBIT margin 7.9% 6.1% 7.6% 5.7%
As a result of price changes, revenue of the FBS segment in the first half
of 2025|26 was € 859.1 million, a moderate increase from the same period
one year earlier.
EBIT of the FBS segment as a whole rose to € 68.0 million in the first six
months of the financial year (H1 previous year: € 50.4 million), with
sales volume remaining stable overall.
Agricultural Commodities & Specialities (ACS) – Starch
€ million, except % H1 H1 Q2 Q2
2025|26 2024|25 2025|26 2024|25
Revenue 506.5 532.9 248.7 267.4
Operating profit [EBIT] 3.1 24.9 0.3 15.5
EBIT margin 0.6% 4.7% 0.1% 5.8%
In the “ACS – Starch” segment, revenue was € 506.5 million in the first
six months of 2025|26, a slight reduction from the year-earlier period.
The decline was partially attributable to lower sales volumes of starch
and saccharification products. Sales prices for ethanol (due to low market
prices) and for saccharification products also decreased.
The resulting narrower margins were the main reason for the low EBIT,
which at € 3.1 million was very significantly below the year-ago figure.
Agricultural Commodities & Specialities (ACS) – Sugar
€ million, except % H1 H1 Q2 Q2
2025|26 2024|25 2025|26 2024|25
Revenue 309.6 489.0 139.5 233.9
Operating loss [EBIT] –36.3 –11.1 –6.8 –10.0
EBIT margin –11.7% –2.3% –4.9% –4.3%
Revenue of the “ACS – Sugar” segment in the first half of 2025|26, at
€ 309.6 million, represented a significant reduction from one year
earlier. The main reasons for the decline were significantly lower sales
to the reseller sector and lower sugar sales prices.
The EBIT result deteriorated sharply year-on-year to a deficit of € 36.3
million. Price pressure was relatively high in the deficit markets
(Central & Eastern Europe region), which had a negative impact on sales
volumes with resellers. In connection with the restructuring of the sugar
business (the closure of the sugar production facilities in Leopoldsdorf,
Austria, and Hrusovany, Czech Republic), expenses of € 20.0 million,
mostly in the form of staff costs, were recognised in the first half of
2025|26. This exceptional item had an added negative impact on EBIT.
Outlook
At Group level for the full 2025|26 financial year, AGRANA expects a
significant increase in operating profit (EBIT) compared with the previous
year. Group revenue is projected to show a moderate decrease. The Group’s
total investment this financial year, at approximately € 100 million, is
expected to be both significantly below the 2024|25 value and
significantly less than the budgeted depreciation of about € 113 million.
About AGRANA
AGRANA converts agricultural raw materials into high-quality foods and
numerous industrial intermediate products. With about 9,000 employees, the
two business areas “Food & Beverage Solutions” and „Agricultural
Commodities & Specialities” generate annual Group revenue of approximately
€ 3.5 billion at 50 production sites worldwide. Established in 1988, the
company is the global market leader in fruit preparations and the world’s
leading producer (and supplier) of apple juice concentrates and berry
juice concentrates. AGRANA is the leading sugar company in Central and
Eastern Europe and a major producer of customised potato, corn and wheat
starch products as well as of bioethanol.
For queries, please contact:
Markus Simak, Public Relations
+43 1 21137 12084, [3]markus.simak@agrana.com
Hannes Haider, Investor Relations
+43 1 21137 12905, [4]hannes.haider@agrana.com
This announcement is available in German and English at [5] www.agrana.com.
[6]^[1] EBITDA represents operating profit before: exceptional items,
results of equity-accounted joint ventures, and operating depreciation and
amortisation.
[7]^[2] Investment represents purchases of property, plant and equipment
and intangible assets, excluding goodwill.
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09.10.2025 CET/CEST This Corporate News was distributed by EQS Group.
www.eqs.com
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Language: English
Company: AGRANA Beteiligungs-Aktiengesellschaft
F.-W.-Raiffeisen-Platz 1
A-1020 Wien
Austria
Phone: +43-1-21137-0
Fax: +43-1-21137-12926
E-mail: investor.relations@agrana.com
Internet: www.agrana.com
ISIN: AT000AGRANA3
WKN: A2NB37
Listed: Regulated Unofficial Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt,
Munich, Stuttgart, Tradegate Exchange; Vienna Stock Exchange
(Official Market)
EQS News ID: 2210148
End of News EQS News Service
2210148 09.10.2025 CET/CEST
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