Vietnam's agri major BAF reports record livestock profit since listing

BAF Vietnam Agriculture JSC in Q1 posted its highest livestock profit since listing in late 2021, thanks to a surge in pig output and revenue that nearly doubled year-over-year.

Net revenue of BAF, listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) as BAF, came in at VND1.1 trillion ($42.36 million), down 10% year-over-year. However, the cost of goods sold dropped by 26% to just over VND833 billion ($32 million).

As a result, gross profit surged to VND290 billion ($11.16 million), 2.27 times higher than the same period last year. The gross margin jumped from just over 10% to nearly 26%, according to BAF’s newly-released Q1 financial statement.

The company attributed the revenue decline to a deliberate scale-back of low-margin agricultural trading activities, allowing a stronger focus on its core livestock business.

Rapid expansion has boosted BAF’s total herd to nearly 800,000 pigs, twice the size of its herd in all of 2023. In addition, a self-sufficient feed supply from two vegetarian feed mills, along with slightly lower raw material prices, helped drive down costs significantly.

In Q1, BAF sold over 160,000 pigs, mainly pork, up nearly 50% growth over the same period. Revenue from pig sales doubled year-over-year and nearly matched the company’s full-year sales in 2023.

Expenses rose significantly such as financial costs up 56% and management expenses more than doubling due to rising scale. But the strong increase of gross profit led to net profit reaching VND138 billion ($5.3 million), 3.4 times higher than Q1/2024.

In Q1/2024, BAF posted a profit of more than VND100 billion ($3.85 million) from a land sale in Mai Chi Tho street, Thu Duc city, Ho Chi Minh City, leading to "other profit" of VND98 billion.

In contrast, "other profit" in Q1/2025 was just VND2.7 billion. As a result, overall net profit increased by 11% to VND132 billion ($3.77 million). Notably, this profit was almost entirely from core livestock operations, marking the company's best livestock performance since its listing in December 2021.

Balance sheet highlights

As of end-March, BAF’s total assets reached nearly VND8.6 trillion ($331.2 million), up 15% from the beginning of the year. Short-term assets exceeded VND4 trillion ($154 million), up 30%, while cash and deposits surged to more than VND1.1 trillion ($42.36 million), 2.6 times higher than at year-start.

Inventory stood at over VND2.2 trillion ($84.73 million), up 4%, including pigs scheduled for sale in upcoming quarters. Fixed assets were slightly higher at over VND2.4 trillion ($92.4 million). Construction-in-progress reached VND989 billion ($38 million), up 11%, comprising several farms set to come online in Q2/2025.

Total liabilities rose 22% to VND5.5 trillion ($211.84 million). Short-term debt held steady at nearly VND3.07 trillion ($118.24 million).

Expansion in 2025

In Q1, BAF launched six new high-tech livestock farms, five in the Central Highlands and one in the central province of Thanh Hoa. The company also began construction on a new animal feed plant in the south-central province of Binh Dinh with a capacity of 300,000 tons per year to supply its expanding farming operations in the region.

Following its strategic partnership with China’s Muyuan Group, BAF has aggressively pursued acquisition activity. From late 2024 through early 2025, the company completed the acquisition of 13 livestock businesses. These farms are expected to begin operations between 2025 and 2026, with a projected capacity of 63,000 sows and 500,000 pigs.

Currently, BAF operates 42 high-tech pig farms, two animal feed mills, and a network of SibaFood and Meats retail stores as part of its closed-loop 3F (farm-feed-food) model.

In 2025, the company plans to bring at least eight new farms online using Muyuan’s technology, with a combined capacity of 17,500 sows and 156,000 pigs.

Looking ahead, BAF has set an ambitious goal of raising 10 million commercial pigs annually by 2030. Toward that goal, the company is seeking approval to construct a multi-story pig farm in Tay Ninh province, capable of producing approximately 1.6 million pigs per year - equivalent to several smaller farms combined.

BAF closed Tuesday at VND34,950 ($1.35) per share.