UPDATE: Yara Profit Meets Views But Outlook Hurts Shares

Norway's Yara International ASA (YAR.OS) met expectations Friday with a 71% rise in first-quarter net profit, but it gave a cautious outlook for the year due to weak grain prices and other factors.

"A late spring will mainly imply a delay of fertilizer sales from first to second quarter, but can also reduce overall demand for the season as the growing phase is shortened," it said in a statement.

Yara, one of the world's largest fertilizer producers, said that there is a clear risk in Europe that deliveries of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, or NPK, may not fully recover this season, hampered by high potash prices, the late spring, weaker grain prices and a weaker euro.

"To avoid inventory buildup, Yara is prepared to extend summer shutdowns at NPK plants if required," it said.

Yara's shares fell after the report. At 1023 GMT, they traded down 3.7% at 222.50 Norwegian kroner ($37.55). The stock has risen 44% in value over the past 12 months, compared with a 64% gain in the broader Oslo market.

"Overall on the outlook side, it was more pessimistic than the market had expected," said Aleksandr Solovjov, analyst at Terra Markets. Solovjov, who has a reduce rating with a NOK230 target for Yara, added that the figures in the report were OK.

Yara's first-quarter net profit rose to NOK1.52 billion from NOK887 million a year earlier, in line with analysts' expectations for NOK1.52 billion, following increased nitrate prices and NPK margins.

Last month, Yara ceded Terra Industries Inc. (TRA) to CF Industries Holdings Inc. (CF), entitling it to a $123 million break fee and avoiding a bidding war.

"We did not succeed in acquiring Terra Industries at an attractive price for Yara, but our growth ambitions remain firm," Yara Chief Executive Officer Jorgen Ole Haslestad said in a statement.

Terra Markets' Solovjov noted that Yara apparently still aims to be an active player in the ongoing consolidation process in the crop-nutrient sector.

Revenue in the first quarter fell to NOK14.69 billion from NOK17.10 billion a year ago due to the postponement of deliveries as a result of unfavorable weather.

The company reported operating profit rose to NOK2.32 billion from NOK1.19 billion.

-By Karl Bruze, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]