Monsanto Company (MON) Q2 2016 Earnings Preview: Seed Giant Likely To Report Drop In Revenue, Profits

American agrochemical and biotechnology giant Monsanto Company will release its latest quarterly earnings report before markets open Wednesday. Analysts expect the seed and agricultural product supplier’s revenue to be adversely affected by a strong dollar, which is hurting its international sales, and a prevailing weakness in the global agricultural industry.

According to an estimate by Reuters, Monsanto is likely to report earnings of $2.44 per share on revenue of $4.75 billion in the quarter ending February 2016, a drop of 15.7 percent from $2.89 per share on revenue of $5.2 billion in the year-earlier period.

The company’s pretax profits are also expected to drop over 27 percent to $1.43 billion from $1.96 billion in the same period last year.

In March, the Missouri company, which has seen its fair share of controversy over the use and development of genetically modified seeds, slashed its earnings forecast for the year, citing “significant headwinds” such as weak foreign currencies and a drop in commodity prices. It now expects adjusted earnings per share between $4.40 and $5.10 in 2016, down from its December guidance of $5.10 to $5.60.

“Today, the macro-environment is proving to be even more challenging, yet we still see strong long-term growth opportunities for our business,” Pierre Courduroux, Monsanto’s senior vice president and chief financial officer, said in a statement released last month. “It’s easy to focus on the current downturn in the agricultural cycle, but as the leader in the industry, we are in a unique position to take advantage of the inevitable rebound and accelerate the delivery of integrated solutions within the industry.”

On Monday, Monsanto’s shares closed down 0.6 percent. So far this year, the company’s shares have dropped 12.4 percent, underperforming the broad market.