MAUMEE, OHIO, US — Strong results from The Andersons’ Trade and Renewables segments boosted the company’s earnings in the third quarter ended Sept. 30.

Net income from continuing operations attributable to the company was $17.4 million, up from $13.9 million in the same quarter a year ago.

The Trade segment reported adjusted pretax income of $40.7 million, up from $27.6 million and Renewables reported income of $8.4 million compared to a loss of $3.6 million a year ago.

"The team executed well and we had positive results from our base business as well as the new growth investments. The Renewables team also performed well in the quarter, despite declining ethanol crush margins and planned maintenance shutdowns,” said Pat Bowe, president and chief executive officer. "We also made progress against our growth strategy. We announced the acquisition of Bridge Agri - a pulses and pet food ingredients company headquartered in Lethbridge, Alberta. We also recently announced the acquisition of Mote Farm Service, a farm center located within our core geography. Bolt-on opportunities like these, that are well-aligned with our core grain and fertilizer verticals, remain very attractive growth opportunities for us."

The Trade segment benefited from strong elevation margins, particularly in early harvest geographies, and excellent merchandising results across the portfolio. In addition, well-positioned animal feed ingredients and organic food and specialty inventories generated good margins, The Andersons said.

Continuing global supply and demand imbalances due to production shortfalls and logistical challenges are expected to keep prices relatively high and allow for continued merchandising opportunities and strong elevation margins.

Nearly all the improvement in the Renewables segment from the third quarter of 2021 resulted from better margins in the company’s ethanol plants.

“This was particularly evident in our eastern plants where corn basis was lower in front of an expected good harvest,” the company said. “High co-product values continue to support our results. Increased corn basis in the western US may negatively impact ethanol margins in that region, while our eastern corn belt production facilities are well-positioned for corn supply. Expected margin declines into the fourth quarter will negatively impact performance as compared to the fourth quarter of 2021 when industry margins were at record highs.”

Renewables had record third quarter EBITDA of $34 million in 2022, up $14.8 million from 2021 third quarter EBITDA of $19.2 million.