Leading fertilizer firms forecast slump in profits this year

PetroVietnam Camau Fertilizer JSC and Petrovietnam Fertilizer & Chemicals Corporation, two subsidiaries of Petrovietnam, have set very low business targets for 2023 after a year of record profits.

PetroVietnam Camau Fertilizer JSC has set an after-tax profit target of VND1,383 billion ($58.59 million) in 2023, down 67% year-on-year. The company aims to reach a revenue of VND13,459 billion ($570.17 million), up 15%.

This year, the company, listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) as DCM, plans to spend more than VND275 billion ($11.65 million) on capital construction and purchasing equipment.

In 2022, DCM recorded net revenue of VND15,924 billion ($674.62 million), up 61% compared to 2021. Of this, the largest revenue came from the urea segment with VND12,466 billion, with the second from fertilizer and packaging products at VND2,065 billion ($87.48 million).

DCM's after-tax profit last year hit VND4,281 billion ($181.36 million), up 2.3 times year-on-year.

On the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, DCM closed Tuesday’s session at VND26,300 ($1.1).

Meanwhile, Petrovietnam Fertilizer & Chemicals Corporation (PVFCCo) has set a total consolidated revenue target of VND17,372 billion ($735.96 million), and consolidated pre-tax profit of VND2,670 billion ($113.11 million) for 2023, down 13% and down 58%, respectively.

In 2022, PVFCCo, listed on the HoSE as DPM, reported net revenue of VND18,627 billion ($789.13 million) and after-tax profit of VND5,606 billion ($237.5 million), up 46% and up 77% year-on-year, respectively.

On the Ho Chi Minh City bourse, DPM closed Tuesday’s session at VND43,200 ($1.8).

VnDirect Securities, a leading securities broker, expects global fertilizer prices to decrease this year because prices in North America have dropped sharply since March last year. Besides, China has approved an increase in yellow phosphorus capacity by 356,000 tons per year for the 2023-2024 period. Therefore, the price of this item will cool in 2023, the broker said.

Viet Capital Securities believes that urea prices will remain high in 2022-2023 due to high gas and coal prices given they are the main input materials.