Vietnam seafood majors post Q2 profit plunge

Seafood majors Minh Phu, Vinh Hoan and Sao Ta all reported sharp profit drops in the second quarter of this year, while Nam Viet made a loss after six consecutive profitable quarters.

Accordingly, Minh Phu Seafood Corporation, Vietnam’s leading shrimp exporter, recorded net revenue of VND2.35 trillion ($99 million), down 48% year-on-year, and after-tax profit of VND10 billion ($421,300), down 93%.

Minh Phu said that the reason for the decline in profits was due to low production and business results of commercial shrimp farming subsidiaries like Minh Phu Loc An Aquaculture Co., Ltd., Minh Phu-Kiengiang Seafood Co., Ltd. and Minh Phu Aquatic Larvae Co., Ltd.

Registered on the unlisted public company market UPCoM as MPC, Minh Phu reported net revenue of VND4.47 trillion ($188.4 million) in the first six months of the year, down 49%, and an after-tax profit loss of VND88 billion ($3.7 million), while in the same period last year it made a profit of VND242 billion ($10.2 million).

As of June 30, MPC's total assets stood at VND10.43 trillion ($439.5 million), down 2% compared to the beginning of the year. Of which, inventories were VND5.61 trillion ($236.2 million), up 11% and accounting for 53% of total assets, while cash and cash equivalents hit VND338 billion ($14.2 million), down 62%.

Minh Phu has targeted a consolidated revenue of more than VND17.99 trillion ($767 million) and after-tax profit of nearly VND1.15 trillion ($49 million) in 2023, up 9% and 38% year-on-year, respectively.

In 2023, the company is set to produce 60,000 tons of seafood, according to its 2022 annual report. It said it is striving for the value of Vietnamese raw shrimp to equal that of India by 2030 and that of Ecuador by 2035.

Minh Phu has been Vietnam’s largest shrimp producer and exporter for several years. Based in the Mekong Delta’s Ca Mau province, the company has in recent years focused investments on upgrading shrimp farming technology. Its main export markets are the U.S., EU, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and Canada.

On the stock market, the MPC price hit VND18,300 ($0.77) on Friday.

Meanwhile, Vinh Hoan Corporation, Vietnam's leading pangasius fish exporter, recorded an after-tax profit of VND412 billion ($17.4 million) in Q2, down 47.7% year-on-year. The company's net revenue reached nearly VND2.72 trillion ($114.7 million), down 35.6%, according to its Q2 consolidated financial statement.

Vinh Hoan said Q2 profits fell due to lower sales volume and selling prices.

In the first half of 2023, Vinh Hoan posted net revenue of VND4.95 trillion ($208.3 million) and post-tax profit of VND665 billion ($28 million), down 34% and 51%, respectively.

At the end of June, Vinh Hoan's total assets had reached VND12.17 trillion ($512.6 million), up 5.1% compared to the beginning of the year, of which inventories increased by 39% to VND3.93 trillion ($165.4 million).

Vinh Hoan has set a net revenue target of VND11.5 trillion ($484.4 million) this year, down 13%, and after-tax profit of VND1 trillion ($42.1 million), down 49%.

On the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), VHC stood at VND76,600 ($3.23) per share at the close on Friday.

Another leading seafood exporter, Sao Ta SJC (FMC) reported net revenue of VND1.03 trillion ($43.5 million) in Q2, down 26% year-on-year, and after-tax profit of VND76 billion ($3.2 million), down 36%.

Two of the main reasons were a decrease in export volume and shrimp selling prices. However, chairman Ho Quoc Luc told Theinvestor that shrimp consumption will likely increase over the rest of this year.

Sao Ta posted net revenue of VND2.04 trillion ($86.24 million) and approximate after-tax profit of VND125 billion ($5.28 million) in the first half of the year, down 25% and 22% year-on-year, respectively.

In 2023, the company has targeted total revenue of VND5.9 trillion ($248.5 million) and pre-tax profit of VND400 billion ($16.85 million).

At the end of Q2, Sao Ta's total assets stood at VND3.2 trillion ($134.8 million), up 7% compared to the beginning of the year, of which inventories hit VND1.29 trillion ($54.2 million), up 38.5%.

On the HoSE, FMC finished at VND46,500 ($1.96) per unit on Friday's close.

Meanwhile, Nam Viet Corporation (Navico), reported a net revenue of VND1.07 trillion ($45.2 million) in Q2, down 17% year-on-year, and a loss of VND51 billion ($2.1 million) after six consecutive quarterly profits.

In the first half of this year, Navico (ANV) earned net revenue of VND2.23 trillion ($93.9 million) and after-tax profit of VND41 billion ($1.7 million), down 11% and 90% year-on-year, respectively.

As of June 30, Nam Viet's assets stood at VND5.48 trillion ($230.88 million), of which inventory was VND2.63 trillion ($110.9 million), accounting for 48% of total assets.

Nam Viet has set total revenue target of VND5.2 trillion ($219 million) and pre-tax profit of VND300 billion ($12.6 million) in 2023.

On the HoSE, the ANV share price stood at VND36,400 ($1.53) per unit at Friday's close.

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development data shows that in the first six months of 2023, Vietnam's seafood exports reached $4.2 billion, down more than 27% compared to the same period in 2022,

Of which, the two main export products, shrimp and pangasius, were lower than in the same period in 2022. The ministry assessed that production and exports in the seafood industry are suffering from high input costs, along with credit tightening and high interest rates that are making it difficult for businesses to source capital.

Top broker SSI Securities said that despite many difficulties, seafood export firms will start to record improved profits in the second half of 2023, thanks to lower input prices for shrimp, raw fish and aqua feed, and reduced shipping costs.

SSI estimates that net revenue and net profit of many companies will increase strongly again in 2024, as exports will begin to recover at the end of the fourth quarter of 2023 or the beginning of 2024.