AMKAF - Maersk raises earnings guidance but sees continued weakness for global trade

2023-08-04 11:15:26 ET

A.P. Moller-Maersk ( OTCPK:AMKBY ) reported Q2 profit that fell sharply from a year ago but beat expectations, prompting it to raise the lower end of its full-year guidance range.

Q2 net profit plunged to $1.45B from $8.62B in the year-earlier quarter, while revenues fell 40% Y/Y to $12.99B; FactSet consensus had seen net profit at $591M million on revenue of $13.09B.

Q2 underlying EBITDA plunged to $2.91B from $10.3B in the year-earlier quarter, beating the $2.41B consensus.

For the full year, Maersk ( OTCPK:AMKBY ) raised the lower end of its guidance range for underlying EBITDA to $9.5B-$11B from $8B-$11B previously, and forecast capital spending at the lower end of the previously outlined ranges of $9B-$10B for 2022-23 and $10B-$11B for 2023-24.

Q2 "contributed to a strong first half of the year, where we responded to sharp changes in market conditions prompted by destocking and subdued growth environment following the pandemic fueled years," CEO Vincent Clerc said.

But the shipping giant sees weak global economic growth given pressure from higher interest rates and potential recessions in Europe and the U.S. while the inventory correction is now expected to last through year end.

As a result, Maersk ( OTCPK:AMKBY ) lowered its outlook for global container volume growth to a range of -4% to -1% compared with -2.5% to +0.5% previously, and its shipping unit is expected to grow in line with the market.

More on A.P. Moeller-Maersk:

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• Analysis: Maersk: We Do Not Share Management's Optimism For Second-Half 2023
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