Nufarm shares lift on FY25 earnings beat
Make us a preferred source
Make us a preferred source on Google
More news: Shares in Nufarm surged in afternoon trade after reporting an FY25 result that posted higher than expected EBITDA and an "encouraging outlook statement”, according to Citi analysts.
At 3:26pm AEDT, shares in Nufarm had lifted 10.75% to $2.37, but are still down 34.5% over the year to date.
Following the earnings release, Citi analysts said they expect shares to “trend higher today on the encouraging outlook and pathway to growth/improvement”. In a note issued after an analyst call with Nufarm executives, the Citi analysts said they came away “more positive” on the company’s near-term outlook.
Citi still has a 'sell' rating on the stock amid “a myriad of headwinds” and a target price on the stock of $2.35.
RBC Capital Markets analyst Owen Birrell said that Nufarm delivered “an okay FY25 result”. Birrell flagged that although revenue was up 3% year on year, it missed consensus by 1%.
He also noted that while adjusted EBITDA was down 3% year on year it was 2% above consensus expectations. He described FY26 guidance as “solid”.
Nufarm appoints Rico Christensen as its next CEO, posts $165m full-year loss
The news: Crop protection and seed technology business Nufarm has promoted Rico Christensen as the successor to CEO and managing director Greg Hunt from 1 January 2026, but will be appointed as an executive director on 1 December 2025.
The company also released its full-year result, which included a statutory net loss after tax of $165.3 million, mostly due to $142.4 million of predominantly non-cash material items from seed technologies business review and performance improvement plan.
The numbers: Underlying EBITDA fell 3% compared to the previous comparable period to $302.5 million. When excluding the impact of Nufarm’s emerging omega-3 and bioenergy platform underlying EBITDA lifted 10% year on year.
Underlying EBITDA for the crop protection business grew by 18% compared to the previous comparable period, “with growth across all regions”.
Nufarm also highlighted that net debt was seasonally unwound by $538 million since the first half of FY25. At the end of FY26, Nufarm expects net debt to be below the previous comparable period and leverage about 2.0, down from the 2.7 at the end of FY25. It is targeting capital investment of below $200 million.
Nufarm is expecting FY26 underlying EBITDA for the Crop Protection business to be “moderating on 18% growth achieved in FY25” and is targeting a $30 million improvement for the omega-3 and bioenergy platforms.
The context: Hunt will remain with the company until 30 June 2026 to facilitate a smooth leadership transition. Christensen joined Nufarm in 2021 as its group executive portfolio solutions.
Nufarm’s reprioritised seed technologies strategy aims to reduce cash costs and capital requirements across the business.
What they said: “We made good progress on cost and working capital and delivered a significant reduction in net debt from the first half. Net debt is below the level anticipated in our August update, a strong demonstration of our ability to deleverage through internal discipline and efficiency,” Nufarm CEO Greg Hunt said.
