Outlook at Origin Enterprises hailed by analysts but shares fall

Analysts have hailed a trading update from Origin Enterprises as showing the international agri-services firm was on course to achieve their price targets for 2017.

The shares nonetheless eased to €6.20 yesterday, leaving Origin down almost 18% since the start of 2016.

Releasing the trading statement that covers the three months to the end of October, the company said it had “an encouraging start” to the year.

Revenues rose by 11% to €333.6m from the same quarter a year ago, but acquisitions accounted for about two-thirds of the uplift. Underlying revenues rose by 1.3% when the dampening effects of currency translation costs were taken into account.

Origin has a presence in the UK, Poland, Ukraine, and Romania.

“Although sector sentiment remains subdued reflecting the current pressures on farm incomes, there has been an encouraging start to trading in the seasonally quiet first quarter,” it said.

There was “a solid foundation for the seasonally more important second half of the financial year”, it said.

Merrion Capital analyst Darren McKinley raised his price target to €6.75. Cathal Kenny at Davy Stockbrokers said that excluding its mostly Polish-focused grain marketing activities, underlying revenues rose by 7.2%. The broker has an “outperform” call on the shares.

Jason Molins at Goodbody Stockbrokers said it was “encouraged”, but was “unlikely to make material changes” to its forecast right now.