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FORT MYERS — Alico posted a profitable fourth quarter after it sold 11,600 acres in Hendry County to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for $20.7 million.
As a result, the cattle and citrus company booked a gain on the sale of $20.3 million, boosting net income to $11.8 million in the fourth quarter ending Sept. 30. That compares with a loss of $465,000 in the same quarter one year ago.
Because of the seasonal nature of agriculture, sales in the fourth quarter are typically lower than at other times of the year. Total operating revenues in the fourth quarter totaled $6.7 million, 0.4% more than the same quarter in 2012 due to an increase in cattle sales.
Total operating revenues at Alico dropped 20% for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30 to $101.7 million due to fewer boxes of citrus sold at lower prices. Citrus-grove profits fell 50% because of a decrease in production and an increase in the cost of sales.
“Greening disease continues to be a problem within the citrus industry. Alico has taken the necessary steps to ensure its future in the citrus industry by constructing a tree nursery facility,” says Clayton Wilson, Alico's CEO, in a statement. “The nursery will provide a guaranteed supply of resets to replace diseased, non-productive trees and will eliminate delivery delays common within the industry by large commercial nurseries.”
However, Wilson noted the outlook for citrus has improved. “The 2013-2014 citrus estimate by the USDA shows the Florida orange crop will be approximately 6.5% less than last season,” Wilson says in a statement. “With a potential shortage of fruit to process this season, pricing by fruit processors for volumes of fruit should be bullish. Our fruit contracts have clauses to take advantage of increases in fruit pricing.”
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