Earnings Labs

Cresud Sociedad Anónima, Comercial, Inmobiliaria, Financiera y Agropecuaria (CRESY)

Q3 2025 Earnings Call· Mon, May 12, 2025

$11.25

+0.00%

Key Takeaways · AI generated
AI summary not yet generated for this transcript. Generation in progress for older transcripts; check back soon, or browse the full transcript below.

Same-Day

+1.21%

1 Week

+1.98%

1 Month

-4.57%

vs S&P

-8.13%

Transcript

Santiago Donato

Operator

Good afternoon, everyone. I'm Santiago Donato, Investor Relations Officer of Cresud, and I welcome you to the third quarter of fiscal year 2025 results conference call. First of all, I would like to remind you that a replay of this webinar, the presentation and the earnings release will be available on our website at www.cresud.com.ar. After management remarks, there will be a question-and-answer session for analysts and investors. [Operator Instructions] Before we begin, I would like to remind you that this call is being recorded, and the information discussed today may include forward-looking statements regarding the company's financial and operating performance. All projections are subject to risks and uncertainties and actual results may differ materially. Please refer to the detailed note in the company's earnings release regarding forward-looking statements. I will now turn the call over to Mr. Alejandro Elsztain, CEO.

Alejandro Elsztain

Analyst

Good afternoon, everybody. Let's begin in Page #2, the main events for the third quarter of this year. And we are in a good campaign, I would say, comparing to last year, it's a bigger campaign. It's bigger planted area comparing. And the main reason was the more listings on the region in Argentina and in Brazil, and we expect to keep growing in leasing for next year, too. Related to climate, there was an average good climate in the region. The only part that didn't receive good rain was mainly Argentina in the North and Paraguay. Paraguay, as Argentina suffered some drought on the summer, and that impacted the yields on the summer crops. In the rest were generally good weather conditions. Related to the commodity prices and the input costs, we are seeing a stable -- I would say, stable price time of the -- mainly in the soybean, some rebound in the corn, I will show you later. And the cost was stable, too, and we are expecting a reduce in the next campaign on costs. We have seen something that is very important to Argentina that is the removal of capital controls that is reducing the gap of the $2 that we had in the past, and we are going to see what important is the impact for the future for the Argentine results. Related to BrasilAgro, we are being in the middle of good productive results, mainly in sugarcane that has much better yield and prices of last year. And the rest of the crop, better in corn but worse mainly in soybeans and cotton. And related to real estate in the first 9 months, we are seeing only in the first quarter sales that there were small sales in Los Pozos and Alto Taquari…

Matias Gaivironsky

Analyst

Thank you, Alejandro. Good afternoon, everybody. So if we see the results of IRSA during this 9-month period, we achieved a profit of ARS 35 billion compared with a loss last year. If you remember, during the first 6 months, IRSA posted losses. And in this quarter, we revert those losses into profits. Major news about our mall segment, where we can see for the first time in the year, an increase in tenant sales. We increased 13.4% of our tenant sales compared with the previous year, still below when we consider the accumulated 9 months, 4.6% below last year but with a trend that is a recovery. About the office portfolio, we maintained 100% occupancy and similar prices than last year. We saw a drop in the hotel segment because of the new macroeconomic situation of Argentina and prices. We are receiving less inflows of tourism to the country, and that has an impact on occupancy in our hotels. About [indiscernible], we are very happy with the progress of the commercialization. We already signed around 11 transactions and 2 are sales in cash and 9 are swaps agreements where IRSA will receive square meters in the future. And also IRSA has important news about the debt that tapped the international capital market issuing a new note that expiring in 2035. When we see the evolution of the rental adjusted EBITDA, we can see that are similar -- an increase to the previous year but an increase in the shopping mall segment. In fact, we have a record high for the last 10 years in the EBITDA in dollar terms for our mall segment. To the financial results of Cresud. First to stand the figures, it's tough when you compare figures that are the main driver is dollars like in…

Santiago Donato

Operator

Well, now is the time for the Q&A session. [Operator Instructions] Yes, we have the first question, here we have. Well, first question regarding dividends, if you are planning to distribute dividends this exercise.

Matias Gaivironsky

Analyst

The decision will be taken on October. So our shareholders' meeting will be in October, we have to submit the proposal around September. So it's not decided yet. So I can't comment any more about that.

Santiago Donato

Operator

Good. Here a question regarding the sub-transactions at IRSA, if we can give a little bit more color on how it works. And what is the motivation for doing swap instead of developing?

Matias Gaivironsky

Analyst

We entered in all the details about Ramblas in the webcast of IRSA. So we -- if you want to enter more deep analysis about that, there is recorded and is public in our website of IRSA. The motivation, just to comment to second, about the motivation is to give speed to the project. So we are giving land to the developers, the development will develop and pay us with square meters in the future. So it's a way for you to develop the project, give speed and became a relevant neighborhood in the city without investing our own money. So that is the main philosophy behind the strategy but you can answer much more details in the presentation of IRSA or contact Santi for more information.

Santiago Donato

Operator

Sure. Yes, there is a question regarding investment in IRSA and what is Cresud long-term intention with this ownership?

Alejandro Elsztain

Analyst

It's a controlling shareholder, and we are not imagining any big changes days. So -- but really I don't know what he has to say.

Matias Gaivironsky

Analyst

No. If you realize, we invested more money in IRSA when IRSA did the capital increase in 2021 and also, we did some acquisitions in the market. So we like the position that we have, and I think we have some complements between the agriculture activity and the activity of IRSA and there are some hedge between the 2.

Alejandro Elsztain

Analyst

These days, it's much better environment at the urban where the yield EBITDA and the farms are in tougher because drop of prices, the rebound probably is coming and maybe this is changing. We don't know, but really it's the biggest asset of Cresud in size, for sure. And so it's relevant for Cresud for sure. But we're not thinking of any big change in these days.

Santiago Donato

Operator

Here a question regarding FyO or the results of negative of FyO. We can explain a little bit more. And if we can expect a dividend policy for the coming years, I imagine Cresud now in general.

Alejandro Elsztain

Analyst

And related to the EBITDA of FyO is very good, and Matias will explain the operational and the financial part of the balance sheet. But the real budget control of the company, it's generating a very profitable EBITDA. To give you a gross number, it's a $15 million EBITDA for the year that the company is expecting. So really is very -- in a very good shape and surpassing 7 million tons, it's the largest of the country, for sure, like a broker. And the brokerage is not only outputs but in inputs in fertilizers, in herbicides, in consultancy. So the company intends to help farmers after production, not inside the farm but when the farming -- the output, it's ready, helps the farmer to close the futures in Argentina and abroad. So the company is helping the servicing farmers in a much bigger volume than Cresud, no? Cresud was big at the beginning but not today. It's not irrelevant, but close to the relevant the volume of Cresud. And in Brazil, is coping the model and not arriving to the 1 million tons still but we expect to pass that. So -- but in the balance sheet, the Matias is going to explain what affected, and it's the main difference of the year in the profit -- in the operational profit of the year.

Matias Gaivironsky

Analyst

Yes. Well, there's some effects. The first one is when we took the last year results, as I mentioned, if we have to reexpress an activity that is dollar-denominated into pesos and then those pesos adjusted by inflation, those pesos to the current numbers that give you like a sense that the number of last year is much higher than what really was. About this year and also there is some seasonality that last year because of the government gave special dollars for farmers trying to incentivize that they liquidate the grains and receive dollars. People tend to anticipate transactions and then generate more revenues at this moment of the year than in the current year. Also, when we analyze the balance sheet or the financial statement of FyO, the activity of FyO sometimes they acquire the products from the farmers and do derivatives transactions that the result of the derivative transaction is in the financial line. So sometimes you see the loss -- or less profit in the revenues or net of the operating results but that will be compensated by derivatives that are below the line. So at the end of the year, as Alejandro showed in the presentation, we are anticipating or projecting more volume for this year compared with the previous year, and prices are at higher prices than the previous year. So at the end of the year, in the next quarter, we should see positive numbers.

Santiago Donato

Operator

Good. Here, we have some questions regarding real estate, farming real estate, given the ongoing policy changes in Argentina and financial stabilization, Are You seeing any meaningful improvement in farmland prices? And do you intend to increase your pace of net investments in farmland in the country? And there is another one that is, do you plan to buy farmland in Argentina? Or do you see better investment opportunities through BrasilAgro in Brazil?

Alejandro Elsztain

Analyst

It's relevant what the government is doing related to agriculture. There are some critics that they didn't took -- they didn't take the taxes on exports still, they made a small reduction. Today, on the 30th of June, there is a maybe a threat of coming back to the price to the taxes they were before. So coming back from the 26% of soybean to 33%. But still, the government insists that it's going to reduce. And he still talks about finishing directly taxes and experts, understanding that damage a lot the agribusiness and it's true. But meantime, the announcement of the only $1 or close to $1 that I think this is the biggest macro now for Argentina. And I think -- that is going to explain why I'm so optimistic on the price of the land of Argentina. Argentina is connected to the price of the core belt of U.S. that is the big correlation. In 2012, 2013 and stayed almost at the same at the $12,000, $13,000, $14,000, $15,000, the hectare of the corn belt. These days, we see some rebound in Argentina. They are speaking about 10%, 20%, beginning to increase the price of the land. But regard to the price of the U.S. all to Brazil is huge. So there is a big chance of that to reduce in the future. So I think there is a drop or a small drop in the price of the land of U.S. and Brazil, comparing to an increase because of the Argentine measures. So I'm optimistic, and we think that we are going to buy some new pieces in Argentina. We have a big portion in Argentina. So the biggest portfolio of land that we have inside of Argentina, we expect that to reevaluate but we think we are going to be buying some assets in Argentina these days, to because of these macro situations. Related to Brazil, yes, we are looking for opportunities, mainly in debt situations, forced to sell but the price of the land went very much up. So the opportunities in Brazil needs to appear because of some crisis. In general, prices are high. So in these prices, you don't find -- you don't see any rebound as we see in Argentina that is probably more possible.

Santiago Donato

Operator

Two more on the financial front. If you sell farms, how would you use that? So capital allocation, would you buy back shares, you could invest into new farms paying dividends, if you can give a little bit of color on capital allocation at Cresud.

Alejandro Elsztain

Analyst

I know that [indiscernible] making the question for you, all of the rest. I think I'll complete it all of that rest. Depending on the situation, we are trying to swap funds that they are mature and to buy in advance that we think have a very big room to appreciate. And the shares, as always, the share that it's very cheap compared to net asset value we buy. And every time we plan, we launched a new plan and buy back shares or buying other shares. So reducing debt and increase in irrigation, we are thinking. In the case of cattle, we are trying to rotate more in the feedlot time that it's more profitable and reducing the raising cattle time that is more long and less profitable. So selling, maybe raising and doing more fattening at the end on farms or feedlots. So yes, rotating the land to make profitable basics in agriculture, you need to keep rotating. You have to give to the market what is really looking and to buy what everyone is hating and to put it in production again, and make, as we always look for a more than 10% yield in the combination of the real estate, operational and service as we are.

Santiago Donato

Operator

Good. I will go with the last one. How do you expect to deal with the $200 million maturity next year? Do you plan to tap the local capital market, the international capital markets?

Matias Gaivironsky

Analyst

What we have been doing in the last 6 months is taking advantage that there is more liquid in dollar terms in Argentina. There are new credit lines from banks refinancing of export that is for short term. So probably when you see -- why we have the short-term debt so high, we increased that part because it's efficient in terms of cost. But then, yes, typically, we finance our operations. And when you see the debt structure is a combination between the bank debt and the capital market. The international capital market, probably you need more size to go. What we learned from IRSA is that investors want at least $300 million size and Cresud, they don't need -- we don't need the $300 million. So probably it will be more in the local market than in the international capital market.

Santiago Donato

Operator

With this, I think we...

Matias Gaivironsky

Analyst

I'm sorry -- and also something important is the warrant. We have a warrant outstanding that expire in February last -- next year. No Cresud is February, next year. And Cresud will receive that warrant is steep in the money. So we -- it's very likely that we will receive proceeds from the warrant considering the warrant of Cresud and the warrant of IRSA that Cresud has, probably Cresud will receive around $27 million inflow in that moment.

Santiago Donato

Operator

Perfect. With this, we finish the presentation and the Q&A. Thank you for joining. I will now turn back to Alejandro for his final remarks.

Alejandro Elsztain

Analyst

We are waiting for the last quarter. There, we're going to close the same rains, soybean and corn, some cotton. And we have a very good position in the region in the 4 countries, and we are very optimistic on the sector. And after this news of this weekend, the trading normalization is really relevant. We need economies to keep growing and every growth goes to better food consumption to the population that's keeping growing. So we are optimistic on the basis for the next quarter and for the longer term. So thank you very much, and we see you on October -- September, October, closing the annual balance sheet. Thanks a lot.