Government
Declares A Health Emergency in Costa Rica
Two Cases of
Swine Flu Confirmed in Costa Rica
Ticos Rush To Buy "Tapabocas"
(Masks)
Costa Ricans Cancel Or
Delay Travel To Mexico
Recope Admits Selling
Gasoline With Ethanol Mix, But Little Can Be
Done About It
Former
President Calderón Seeks Re-Election
Coast Guard
Rescues Mariners After Boat Sank Off Costa
Rica
Oversupply Of
Melons, Bad Weather Hurt
Fresh Del Monte
Oversupply Of
Melons, Bad Weather Hurt
Fresh Del Monte
An
oversupply of melons and severe weather
conditions in Costa Rica dented quarterly
profit at Fresh Del Monte Produce (FDP.N),
sending the fruit and vegetable producer's
shares down 13 percent.
Analyst William Chappell of SunTrust
Robinson Humphrey said the company's issue
of melons oversupply was a case of bad
timing. Melon pricing in the first quarter
fell 19 percent, while volumes grew 40
percent.
"They dramatically expanded their melons
business late last year just before the
market really fell apart. And it never
really helped their numbers," Chappell told
Reuters.
BB&T Capital Markets analyst Heather Jones,
who expects weakness in melons business to
continue in the next quarter, said costs
associated with the Costa Rican floods were
higher than her estimates.
On a conference call with analysts, the
company said adverse weather led to an 11
percent increase in fruit costs for bananas
exported from Latin America and a 10 percent
increase in costs for pineapples sourced
from Costa Rica.
Sales at the company's other fresh produce
segment, which includes melons, pineapples,
tomatoes and fresh-cut fruits, were flat but
gross profit at the segment fell 48 percent.
Overall pricing for the segment fell 15
percent.
Shares of Coral Gables, Florida-based Fresh
Del Monte were down $1.91 at $15.12 Tuesday
afternoon, making them one of the top
percentage losers on the New York Stock
Exchange. They had touched a low of $14.80
earlier.
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