Issu de la fusion des activités d'agrochimie d'AstraZeneca et du suisse Novartis en novembre 2000, Syngenta est le n° 1 mondial de l'agrochimie.
Syngenta est une entreprise dominante de l’agro-industrie à l’échelle mondiale. La société est un leader dans le domaine de la protection des cultures et occupe le troisième rang du marché des semences commerciales à haute valeur ajoutée. Le chiffre d’affaires réalisé en 2002 était d’environ USD 6,2 milliards. Syngenta occupe quelque 20 000 personnes dans plus de 90 pays. La société s’engage pour le développement d’une agriculture durable à travers des activités de recherche et des technologies novatrices. Syngenta est cotée à la Bourse Suisse (SYNN) et sur les marchés boursiers de Londres (SYA), New York (SYT) et Stockholm (SYN)

http://www.syngenta.fr

Syngenta : 2009 Full Year Results
Basel, Switzerland, February 5, 2010
Sustained cash generation, positioned for further growth 

Sales $11 billion, up 1 percent at constant exchange rates  EBITDA(2) margin maintained at 21.6 percent: Seeds margin 9.5 percent 
Earnings per share(3) $15.76, 3 percent lower  Earnings per share $14.62 after restructuring and impairment, unchanged 
Free cash flow $580 million  2010 cash return around $750 million: maintained dividend, share repurchase 

Mike Mack, Chief Executive Officer, said: 

“In 2009 Syngenta achieved earnings close to the record level of 2008 in the face of considerable challenges including negative currency movements and higher raw material costs. This achievement reflects our discipline in pricing, made possible by the proven value of our products to growers, and strong growth in Seeds accompanied by a significant improvement in profitability. It also reflects our ability to restrain costs in a difficult environment and to continue generating substantial free cash flow. Our active management of risk in Latin America and Eastern Europe also contributed to the ongoing strength of our balance sheet, and placed us in a good position to benefit from the upturn in these regions which began towards year end. In the emerging markets of Asia Pacific, growth continued throughout the year as growers continued to invest in yield improvement. 

“Strong growth in sales of new Crop Protection products and accelerating returns in Seeds attest to the success of Syngenta’s sustained investment in R&D. We also continued to make targeted acquisitions. Around the world we are focusing on the longer term expansion of our business, for which the fundamental drivers of population growth and evolving diets remain unchanged.”

(1) Growth at constant exchange rates, see Appendix A in full English version. 
(2) EBITDA, a non-GAAP measure, is in regular use as a measure of operating performance and is defined in Appendix B in full English version. 
(3) EPS on a fully-diluted basis, excluding restructuring and impairment. 
(4) Net income to shareholders of Syngenta AG. 
 

Financial performance 2009 

Sales $11 billion

Sales at constant exchange rates (CER) increased by one percent. Reported sales were five percent lower owing to the strength of the dollar in the first half of the year. Crop Protection sales* were two percent lower (CER); Seeds sales increased by 13 percent (CER).

* Crop Protection sales include $71 million of inter-segment sales..

EBITDA margin 21.6 percent

EBITDA increased by nine percent (CER) to $2.4 billion. Price increases offset higher raw material costs and Seeds profitability increased significantly as a result of portfolio improvements.

Currency movements

The impact of currencies on reported sales was particularly marked in the first half, following the substantial devaluation of emerging market currencies against the dollar towards the end of 2008. The impact of these devaluations on operating income was partly offset by price increases. The weakening of the dollar against all currencies in the second half resulted in a positive currency effect on fourth quarter sales.

Earnings per share $15.76

Earnings per share excluding restructuring and impairment were three percent lower owing to the adverse currency movements. Including restructuring and impairment, earnings per share were unchanged at $14.62.