ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA, US — Weighed down by a sharp decrease in Energy profits, CHS Inc. on April 3 reported a 41% decline in overall second-quarter profits compared to the same record-setting quarter in 2023. However, profits and sales in the cooperative’s Ag segment were markedly improved.  

CHS’ net income for the second quarter, which ended Feb. 29, was $170.3 million, down from $292.3 million from the same period a year ago. Sales totaled $9.1 billion, down from $11.3 billion in last year’s second quarter. For the first six months of the cooperative’s fiscal year, the company reported net income of $693.2 million and revenues of $20.5 billion, which compared with $1.1 billion and $24.1 billion — both records — in the first half of 2023.

“The first six months of our fiscal year have delivered overall good financial results,” said Jay Debertin, president and chief executive officer of CHS. “Our supply chain investments and well-diversified portfolio, empowered by our people and technology, are helping us perform well as we connect farmers and local cooperatives with the inputs and services they need to help feed the world.”

Debertin said margins in the Energy segment during the second quarter declined from the highs of the prior year due to the historically warm winter in the United States. Due to lower demand for propane and refined fuels, net income of $51.6 million for the second quarter represented a $213.2 million decrease from the same period in 2023.

For the first six months of the fiscal year, the company posted net income of $318.4 million in the Energy segment, a steep decline from $661.4 million on the first half of 2023.

Conversely, second-quarter net income in the Ag segment soared to $56.9 million, representing an increase of $138.4 million, or 170%, compared with last year’s second quarter. For the first six months of the fiscal year, net income was $226.5 million, up from $205.7 million in the first half of last year.

CHS said the improved financial performance was due to “improved margins in its wholesale and retail agronomy products, increased margins in its grain and oilseed product category due to the timing impact of market adjustments, and higher grain and oilseed volumes due to improved efficiencies and a more balanced global supply and demand environment.”

In its other two segments — Nitrogen Production and Corporate Other — CHS reported declines in second quarter net income. The company saw its net income in Nitrogen Production fall to $37 million, down from $81.7 million in the same period last year, while net income in its Corporate and Other segment decreased to $40.2 million, compared with $48 million a year ago.