Seeka H1 2026 slides: automation drives record profit on lower volumes

Seeka, a New Zealand-based horticulture company, reported its unaudited interim results for the six months ending June 30, 2026, on August 20, 2026. Despite lower fruit volumes, strategic investments in automation led to record first-half profitability. The company's net profit before tax rose to $62.6 million, a 5% increase from the previous year, while debt was reduced, and the balance sheet strengthened.

Trading at $5.20 per share, 0.19% higher than the previous close, Seeka's stock remains near its 52-week range of $4.13 to $5.55, indicating investor confidence in its operational efficiency gains. Despite modest revenue growth, driven by a 4% reduction in New Zealand kiwifruit crop volumes, Seeka achieved significant improvements in gross profit and EBITDA, marking notable operational leverage.

The strong performance in post-harvest earnings, despite a 4% drop in kiwifruit volumes, highlights the benefits of automation investments like the newly commissioned Reemoon solutions. This success underscores the company's ability to reduce labor dependency while enhancing processing speed and quality. Seeka's interim results showed a 19% increase in earnings per share to $1.07, driven by lower finance costs and improved profitability.

The company declared an interim dividend of $0.20 per share, with net tangible assets per share increasing 11% to $7.12. Post-harvest operations, which generated $73.3 million in EBIT on $206.6 million in revenue, remain the earnings engine, accounting for 66% of Seeka's total asset base. The company made significant strides in debt reduction and balance sheet optimization, reducing net bank debt to $119.8 million and improving its net leverage ratio to 1.22 times net bank debt to EBITDA.