Chemical Giant Bayer Reports Heavy Drop in Profit Amid Ongoing Roundup Cancer Lawsuit
November 12, 2024 | Source: Fortune | by AFP
German chemicals giant Bayer on Tuesday cut its forecast for 2024 operating earnings after a poor performance in its agrochemicals division hit quarterly profits.
The group reported a net loss of 4.18 billion euros ($4.45 billion) in the third quarter, with revenues in its agricultural unit down 3.6 percent.
A heavy drop in sales of its key glyphosate-based weedkillers — at the centre of long-running legal fights over claims they cause cancer — weighed particularly heavily.
Earnings at the agricultural unit were also hit by hefty writedown on assets.
“The development of the agricultural market has been weaker than anticipated, especially in Latin America,” the group said in a statement.
The Leverkusen-based group, which also makes pharmaceuticals and consumer health products, confirmed its sales targets for 2024.
But it lowered its outlook for EBITDA — or operating earnings, a key measure of corporate profitability — to between 10.4 billion and 10.7 billion euros from a previous forecast of between 10.7 billion and 11.3 billion euros.
It also cut the outlook for profit margins in the agrochemicals division.