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Benchmark Holdings PLC on Tuesday reported a narrowed first-half loss and increased revenue, primarily driven by sales of marine fish species, and said it is ‘well positioned’ in the short term despite an expected decline in sea lice sales. The West Sussex, England-based aquaculture biotechnology company reported a pretax loss of £1.9 million for the half year ended March 31, slimmed from £5.1 million a prior year. Its loss for the second quarter ended March 31 widened to £2.0 million from £1.5 million. Revenue increased 25% for the half year to £98.9 million from £79.2 million the prior year. In its genetics division it increased 30% to £34.5 million from £26.6 million, primarily because sales of salmon eggs rose 45% to £181 million from £134 million. The health division’s sales rose by 78% to £19.1 million from £10.7 million, with Benchmark noting ‘growing adoption of our highly efficacious sea lice solution’. Meanwhile, revenues in advanced nutrition increased 8% to £45.3 million from £42.0 million over the six months, despite decreasing slightly by 1% in the second quarter to £22.6 million from £23.0 million. Benchmark attributed this to ‘soft shrimp markets’, with shrimp sales declining to £700,000 in the 2023 financial half year from £800,000 the previous year. Benchmark said it was ‘on track to deliver strong growth for the year in line with market expectations’, with good visibility of salmon egg sales in Norway and Iceland. It said the global shrimp market should remain unchanged in the short term, but conditions will improve as global inventory levels normalise. The company also expects decreased revenue in the third quarter ‘to reflect the seasonally low sea lice treatment season’ before an increase in the fourth quarter. ‘We continue to focus on achieving profitability and cash generation whilst making good progress towards our medium-term objectives; we remain on track to deliver strong growth for the year in line with market expectations,’ Chief Executive Officer Trond Williksen commented. ‘Our fundamentals are strong and we have significant opportunities to continue building our track record of consistent growth...Benchmark is well positioned to play an important role in helping the aquaculture industry deliver sustainable growth and meet the needs of a rising population.’ Shares in Benchmark were 0.1% lower at 41.45 pence in London on Tuesday. Copyright 2023 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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