Farmer co-op CHS reports $343.7 million earnings for first quarter fiscal 2013

ST. PAUL, Minn., Jan. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- CHS Inc. (NASDAQ: CHSCP), an energy grains and foods company and the nation's leading farmer-owned cooperative, today reported earnings of $343.7 million for the first quarter of its 2013 fiscal year.

Earnings attributed to CHS operations for the period (Sept. 1, 2012 through Nov. 30, 2012) declined 17 percent from $416.2 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2012.  

Revenues for the first quarter of fiscal 2013 reached $11.7 billion, compared with $9.7 billion for the first three months of fiscal 2012. This primarily reflected continuing strong values for the energy, grain and crop nutrients products that comprise the majority of CHS business.

Energy segment earnings led the company's performance for the quarter, but declined from the same period a year ago due to reduced margins at CHS refineries in Montana and Kansas. Earnings improved for CHS propane, renewable fuels and transportation businesses, but declined slightly for its lubricants operations.

While soundly profitable, earnings also declined within the CHS Ag segment primarily due to lower margins for the grains and oilseeds the company markets and processes, as well as the crop nutrients it handles. Within the segment, quarter-over-quarter earnings increased for the company's Country Operations retail locations which reported higher volumes for the retail products and grain it handles. The CHS processing and food ingredients businesses also recorded improved margins for its soybean crushing and refining operations.

CHS reports results for its business services operations, as well as two food processing-related joint ventures, under the Corporate and Other category. CHS-owned financing businesses recorded higher earnings for the quarter, which were partially offset by slower hedging activity in the first three months of fiscal 2013. The company's share of earnings from its 50 percent ownership of Ventura Foods, LLC, a vegetable oil-based food manufacturing business, improved due to stronger margins, while those from its 24 percent CHS share of Horizon Milling, LLC, the nation's leading wheat miller, remained flat compared to the same period in fiscal 2012.

CHS Inc. (www.chsinc.com) is a leading global agribusiness owned by farmers, ranchers and cooperatives across the United States. Diversified in energy, grains and foods, CHS is committed to helping its customers, farmer-owners and other stakeholders grow their businesses through its domestic and global operations. CHS, a Fortune 100 company, supplies energy, crop nutrients, grain marketing services, livestock feed, food and food ingredients, along with business solutions including insurance, financial and risk management services. The company operates petroleum refineries/pipelines and manufactures, markets and distributes Cenex^® brand refined fuels, lubricants, propane and renewable energy products.

This document contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that are based on management's current expectations and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the potential results discussed in the forward-looking statements. The company undertakes no obligations to publicly revise any forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances. For a discussion of additional factors that may materially affect management's estimates and predictions, please view the CHS Inc. annual report filed on Form 10-K for the year ended Aug. 31, 2012, which can be found on the Securities and Exchange Commission web site (www.sec.gov) or on the CHS web site www.chsinc.com.

SOURCE CHS Inc.