Warrnambool Cheese and Butter Factory said today (28 February) its first-half earnings more than doubled despite the “distraction” of a takeover battle for the business, which resulted in Canada’s Saputo taking majority ownership in the dairy group.
WCB revealed first-half underlying profit after tax was A$36.5m (US$32.7m), an increase of A$21.2m on the first half of last year. Operating profit after tax totalled A$31.3m in the six months to 31 December, up 104.7% year-on-year.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
The result included A$2.1m in defence costs associated with takeover bids from Bega Cheese and Murray Goulburn during the highly-publicised takeover battle for the Australian group. The WCB board threw its weight behind an offer from Saputo, which had secured ownership of 87.92% of voting shares as of 12 February.
“Although the takeover process was lengthy and well publicised, the bids for WCB have realised an excellent premium for WCB shareholders,” said WCB chairman Terry Richardson. “The WCB board believes Saputo’s final offer has been in the best interest of shareholders and other business stakeholders.”
WCB said the outlook for the remainder of the year is “positive”, with strong demand for dairy commodities globally. However, the company cautioned seasonal factors mean is it “normal” for the half-year operating results to exceed those of the full year.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalData
