CF Industries Holdings Inc., Deerfield, Ill., on Oct. 31 announced third-quarter 2018 net earnings attributable to common stockholders of $30 million ($0.13 per diluted share) compared to a year-ago loss of $87 million ($0.37 per share). Adjusted EBITDA moved up to $300 million from the year-ago $134 million.
“Strong execution by the CF team and higher nitrogen prices have driven our performance in 2018, with adjusted EBITDA through nine months 50 percent higher than last year,” said Tony Will, CF president and CEO. “Over the next several years, we believe the global nitrogen supply and demand balance will continue to tighten. We also expect that global energy fundamentals are likely to support higher hydrocarbon prices internationally, elevating production costs for marginal producers. These same factors are keeping North American natural gas prices low, benefiting our production costs. This should further enhance the superior cash generation capability of CF’s network.”
Third-quarter sales were $1.04 billion, up from the year-ago $870 million. The increase was primarily driven by higher average selling prices across all segments. Total sales volumes were slightly lower compared to year-ago levels as lower ammonia and ammonium nitrate sales volume were partially offset by higher granular urea sales volume.