EANS-Adhoc: AGRANA Beteiligungs-AG / AGRANA substantially improves profitability in first nine months

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9-month report

14.01.2010

AGRANA, the sugar, starch and fruit group, in the third quarter of
the 2009|10 financial year continued the good trend of the first six
months. Although revenue eased slightly on reduced selling prices,
profitability improved markedly from the year-earlier period thanks
to lower raw material and energy costs; the comparative period of the
prior year had included the negative effect of a write-down on apple
juice concentrate inventories. At the same time, net debt was reduced
by EUR 79 million since the prior year-end, to EUR 391 million.

Group revenue in the first nine months of the 2009|10 financial year
(1 March to 30 November 2009), at EUR 1,535.8 million, dipped 3.7%
from the year-earlier level of EUR 1,595.5 million. The revenue
decrease in the Sugar segment was 5.2%, bringing the segment revenue
to EUR 547.7 million. In the Starch segment, revenue receded by 4.2%
to EUR 380.4 million; in Fruit, it decreased by 2.1% to EUR 607.7
million. Sugar accounted for 35.7% of Group revenue (down from 36.2%
in the first three quarters of the prior year), Starch contributed
24.8% (versus 24.9%) and Fruit generated 39.6% (up from 38.9%) of
Group revenue.

Group operating profit before exceptional items quadrupled from EUR
19.7 million to EUR 78.9 million. Important factors in this
improvement were lower raw material and energy costs and, in the
Sugar segment, cost relief through the absence of the restructuring
levy under the EU sugar market reform. The Starch segment benefited
especially from the lower raw material and energy costs, which during
the reporting period still more than made up for the lower product
sale prices. In the Fruit segment, where the prior-year result had
been depressed by the write-downs on apple juice concentrate
inventories, profitability showed a pronounced upturn. Net financial
items improved in the first three quarters of 2009|10 from a net
expense of EUR 28.8 million to a net expense of EUR 4.9 million as a
consequence of currency translation gains, the reduction in net debt
and lower interest rates. After tax, the Group´s profit for the
period was EUR 57.8 million (up from a loss for the period of EUR
16.1 million in Q1-Q3 2008|09).

"We are pleased that profitability strengthened in all segments
compared to the year-earlier period, bringing us a big step closer to
regaining our pre- crisis levels of operating profit," says AGRANA
Chief Executive Officer Johann Marihart.

AGRANA Group - Results for the three quarters ended November 30
(IFRS)

Q1-Q3 Q1-Q3
2009|10 2008|09
Revenue EURm 1,535.8 1,595.5
Operating profit before EURm 78.9 19.7
exceptional items
Exceptional items EURm 0 -2.3
Operating profit after EURm 78.9 17.4
exceptional items
Profit/(loss) before tax EURm 74.0 -11.4
Profit/(loss) for the EURm 57.8 -16.1
period
Earnings per share EUR 4.04 -0.96
Staff count 8,117 8,592

Revenue by segment
EURm Q1-Q3 Q1-Q3
2009|10 2008|09
Sugar segment 547.7 577.6
Starch segment 380.4 397.3
Fruit segment 607.7 620.7
AGRANA Group revenue 1,535.8 1,595.5

Investment in the first nine months of 2009|10 amounted to EUR 25.5
million (prior-year Q1-Q3: EUR 48.9 million) and thus, as planned,
remained well below current depreciation.

Sugar segment Revenue in the Sugar segment in the first three
quarters of 2009|10 eased by 5.2% to 547.7 million. This was
attributable to a volume reduction in quota sugar sales, combined
with declining prices for quota sugar. In out-of-quota sugar, exports
to non-EU countries were expanded vigorously by targeting new
markets. The Sugar segment´s operating profit before exceptional
items grew by 11.0% to EUR 19.2 million, primarily as a result of the
elimination of the restructuring levy from the 2009|10 sugar
marketing year onward.

Starch segment In the first three quarters of 2009|10, revenue in the
Starch segment decreased by 4.2% year-on-year to EUR 380.4 million.
The lower raw material costs already generated more pressure on
selling prices. The full utilisation of the bioethanol plants in
Austria and Hungary, as well as higher sales of native starches and
saccharification products, meanwhile allowed sales quantities to
increase. The segment´s pre-exceptionals operating result rose to EUR
34.3 million (prior-year Q1-Q3: EUR 15.3 million) and the EBIT margin
widened to 9.0% (prior-year Q1-Q3: 3.9%).

Fruit segment Fruit segment revenue in the first nine months of
2009|10 dipped 2.1% to EUR 607.7 million. Stable sales volumes of
fruit preparations and higher sales quantities of fruit juice
concentrates were unable to make up for the lower sale prices
received, especially for apple juice concentrate. Fruit preparations
revenue (accounting for 80% of segment revenue) was narrowly below
the prior-year level. The Fruit segment´s operating profit of EUR
25.4 million before exceptional items represented a turnaround from
the comparative period´s loss of EUR 12.8 million brought about by
write-downs on apple juice concentrate inventories.

Outlook For the full current 2009|10 financial year, AGRANA confirms
the forecast of a significant improvement in operating profit before
exceptional items. As a result of the decrease in sale prices, Group
revenue is expected to come in marginally below EUR 2.0 billion.

In the sugar activities, the EU restructuring levy is eliminated from
the beginning of the new 2009|10 sugar marketing year on 1 October
2009. For the Starch segment a price-induced reduction in revenue is
predicted, despite full utilisation of the bioethanol capacity in
Austria and Hungary and the volume growth in sales of starch
products. Revenue at the prior-year level is expected in the Fruit
segment. The diversification of AGRANA´s fruit preparations products
for the baking and ice cream industries continues. A stabilisation in
prices is visible in apple juice concentrates.

On balance for 2009|10, AGRANA expects to return to the approximate
level of the good operating profit results of the financial years
before 2008|09, although the fourth quarter earnings, especially in
the Starch segment, will not match the first three quarters.

This press release and the report on the first three quarters of
2009|10 are available in German and English on the Internet at
www.agrana.com.

end of announcement euro adhoc
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ots Originaltext: AGRANA Beteiligungs-AG
Im Internet recherchierbar: http://www.presseportal.de

Further inquiry note:

Investor Realtions:

Mag. Maria Fally

Tel.: 01-21137-12905

maria.fally@agrana.com

Public Relations:

Mag. Ulrike Pichler

Tel.: 01-21137-12084

ulrike.pichler@agrana.com

Branche: Food
ISIN: AT0000603709
WKN: 779535
Index: WBI, ATX Prime
Börsen: Berlin / Präsenzhandel
Frankfurt / Präsenzhandel
Stuttgart / Präsenzhandel
Wien / official market