Deals
Callebaut Profit Beats Estimates on More Lucrative Contracts
- Magnum chocolate maker phasing out lower-margin cocoa orders
- Shares surge as Swiss company outperforms chocolate industry
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Barry Callebaut AG, the low-profile maker of a quarter of the world’s chocolate, reported first-half earnings that beat estimates as it weeds out less profitable cocoa contracts.
Earnings before interest and taxes dropped 8.4 percent to 201 million Swiss francs ($210 million) in the six months through February, weighed down by the currency’s strength, the Zurich-based company said in a statement Wednesday. Analysts expected 191 million francs. The stock rose 8.6 percent as of 10:50 a.m. in Zurich, on track for the biggest gain in more than seven years.