The Inghams Group Ltd (ASX: ING) share price is having a difficult session on Friday.
At the time of writing, the ASX 200 share is down 16% to $3.61.
Investors have been hitting the sell button today despite the poultry producer releasing its half-year results and reporting the more than doubling of its profits.
ASX 200 share crashes on half-year results release
- Revenue increased 8.7% to $1.64 billion
- EBITDA up 28.8% to $253.7 million
- Net profit after tax up 268.6% to $63.4 million
- Underlying net profit up 107.5% to $69.3 million
- Fully franked interim dividend up 167% to 12 cents per share
What happened?
For the six months ended 31 December, the ASX 200 share reported an 8.7% increase in revenue to $1.64 billion. This was driven largely by growth in net selling prices across all channels, reflecting increases implemented in response to increased costs.
Inghams' underlying costs grew by 6.9% due to higher internal feed costs and volume and inflationary factors. This was partially offset by efficiencies and an improvement in operational performance.
This ultimately led to Inghams reporting a 107.5% increase in underlying net profit after tax to $69.3 million, which allowed the company to lift its interim dividend by 167% to 12 cents per share.
Outlook
It may be the company's outlook commentary that is weighing on the Inghams share price today. Management said:
Inghams delivered a strong set of interim results for 1H24, in‐line with the trading update provided in October 2023. However, market conditions for consumers over 2H24 are expected to remain challenging, underpinning the shift already being seen toward in‐home dining (Retail) from out‐of‐home (QSR and Food Service) channels.
The ASX 200 share remains up 35% on a 12-month basis despite today's weakness.
