International agri-services group Origin Enterprises has revised upwards its earnings outlook for this year.
In a stock market update, the company said it now expects to deliver increased growth in earnings year-on-year, with fully adjusted diluted earnings per share for the year to the end of July anticipated to be in the range of 45c to 49c.
The company is due to report its third quarter results on April 30.
The group said it has a strong first half operating performance across all three segments in the period to the end of January and expects to deliver solid growth in earnings for the full year.
"Since then trading has continued to strengthen across the Group," it said.
"The first half recovery in Ireland and UK has continued into Q3, with favourable on-farm sentiment underpinning performance in Poland and Romania, while our Latin American business is currently performing ahead of expectations."
Origin Enterprises provides specialist agronomy advice, crop inputs and digital agricultural solutions to farmers, growers, landscapers and amenity professionals in Ireland, the UK, Brazil, Poland, Romania and Ukraine.
"In a challenging environment, Origin has demonstrated agility and capitalised on competitor dislocation," said Davy analysts Roland French, Cathal Kenny and Gary Martin, who increased their operating profit forecast by €7m to €77m.
"Despite the challenging backdrop, Origin has hit a purple patch, with consecutive profit upgrades underpinning its +25% year-to-date performance – the only stock in our food coverage to be in positive territory over the same timeframe," they added.
Shares in the company moved higher in Dublin trade today.
