Monsanto Finishes Fiscal 2017 Strong Even as Merger Doubts Linger
Monsanto (NYSE: MON) has been in limbo for more than a year now. On one hand, the company has been working to grow its core business, continuing to offer advances in seeds and agricultural genomics to improve crop yields and produce more food. On the other, Monsanto remains the target of an acquisition bid that Bayer made back in 2016. Monsanto has maintained throughout that it believes the deal will go through, but skeptics have been more critical of the proposed combination, and a recent move from regulators in Brazil has only heightened the level of uncertainty.
Coming into Wednesday's fiscal fourth-quarter report, Monsanto investors had relatively low expectations, looking for a decline in sales and a net loss. The company gave good news on both fronts, positively surprising shareholders and pointing to the ongoing potential that Monsanto has to thrive either as part of Bayer or independently. Let's look more closely at what Monsanto said and what lies ahead for the company.
Image source: Monsanto.
Source: Fool.com
