Fruit distributor Fyffes has said it has delivered a strong performance in the early months of 2012 and increased its target profit range for the year.
In a trading update today, the company said it was upgrading its earnings target range to €25-30m, up from €22-27m and compared to €23.2m in 2011.
It said this would equate to an adjusted earnings per share of between 6.80 and 8.30 cent, compared to 6.05 cent last year.
It added that the result will be significantly weighted towards the first half of the year as in previous years.
Fyffes said the industry has experienced further cost inflation in the first four months of 2012, including higher bunker fuel costs. It said it continues to pursue necessary increases in selling prices in all of its markets.
''The group's performance to date in 2012 and its positive outlook for the full year reflects the impact of further operational efficiencies, a continued focus on costs and returns on the group's significant investment in the business in recent years,'' a statement from the company said.
