Costa pulls guidance citing great 'uncertainty' and volatility

Fresh produce giant Costa Group has become the latest company to pull its full year earnings guidance, citing the great economic and social uncertainty created by the coronavirus.

The company said it had delivered a "robust trading performance" in the March quarter that was above budget and significantly ahead of the previous March quarter.

Costa Group is a major Australian grower and marketer of oranges, mushrooms, blueberries and other fresh produce.Credit:

"Notwithstanding the pleasing trading performance to date, with the current high level of uncertainty and volatility in the social and economic environment generally, it is not possible to provide meaningful forward financial forecasting with any reliable accuracy," the company said.

"While we were initially hopeful of a relatively quick economic and business recovery in Australia and internationally, in recent days it has become clear that restrictions, and the impacts from them, will continue for longer than initially hoped and will vary significantly in the different markets for our products," it said.

The latest guidance from the ASX-listed fresh produce giant was for EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) of about $150 million for the full 2020 calendar year, before the agricultural accounting standard SGARA and leasing costs.

Costa said overall trading was positive, despite some signs of supply chain and market volatility across different product categories.

Costa also said that its balance sheet, cashflow and liquidity were strong. Shares in Costa closed up 0.3 per cent on Thursday at $3.