Austevoll Seafood ASA

Second-quarter operating revenue was close to NOK 10.1 billion, up from NOK 8.6 billion year over year. EBITDA was NOK 1.3 billion versus NOK 1.8 billion excluding last year’s one-off share-sale gain, and EBIT was NOK 754 million. Net profit was NOK 106 million, with EPS of NOK 0.3; adjusted for the biomass adjustment, EPS was NOK 1.3 versus NOK 5.10 last year. On a half-year basis, revenue was just below NOK 20 billion, EBITDA was NOK 3.2 billion, and EBIT was NOK 2.1 billion. Management said the quarter was weighed down by lower salmon and trout prices, lower fishmeal and fish oil prices, a NOK 513 million negative fair value adjustment to biological assets, and higher depreciation of NOK 544 million. Looking ahead, management maintained Lerøy guidance at 195,000 tonnes in Norway and 16,000 tonnes in Scotland, or 211,000 tonnes total for 2025, and said they expect to slaughter just below 220,000 tonnes of salmon in total. They also said 2025 jack mackerel production is expected to be 140,000 tonnes, and that Chile volumes for 2025 may be higher than previously guided because the new fishing law only takes effect in 2026.

Arne Mogster said the group is primarily a volume-driven business and emphasized that operational volumes were generally strong across the portfolio. He was upbeat about Lerøy’s biological improvement and said the measures implemented there are now showing up in results, but he was clearly concerned that market prices are now below production cost for salmon. He also highlighted structural issues in Chile’s new fishing law and tougher quota conditions in the North Atlantic, both of which reduce predictability and make long-term investment planning harder.

Britt Kathrine Drivenes said the quarter’s operating revenue was close to NOK 10.1 billion, up 17% from NOK 8.6 billion, but EBITDA fell because salmon and trout prices dropped and South American fishmeal/fish oil pricing weakened. She noted depreciation increased to NOK 544 million from NOK 502 million due to investments in new farming technology and service/treatment vessels. She also pointed to a NOK 513 million negative fair value adjustment on biological assets, said net interest-bearing debt was NOK 9.1 billion, equity ratio was 52%, and cash ended at close to NOK 4.5 billion after NOK 2.1 billion of dividends and NOK 430 million of investing cash outflows in the quarter.

There was no formal analyst Q&A in the transcript, but management addressed the main investor concerns proactively: weak salmon prices, lower fishmeal and fish oil prices, Peru’s reduced yields and higher costs, and uncertainty around Chile’s new fishing law. They said Lerøy’s biology is improving and that 2025 volumes are on track, but they also stressed that the salmon market is now oversupplied versus recent years and that prices are below production cost. On Chile, they explained that the law changes do not begin until 2026, which is why 2025 volumes are better than previously guided.