Bloomberg — Mexican cement maker Cemex fell the most this year after posting an unexpected quarterly loss and its guidance for 2023 disappointed amid pressures from energy costs and weak volumes.
Depositary receipts dropped as much as 5% in New York on Monday, the most intraday since Nov. 2, after the company reported a controlling interest net loss for the fourth quarter of last year. Despite weakness this month, Cemex remains one of the top performing stocks on the Mexbol index this year after one of the worst returns of 2022 on the gauge.
Cemex said in a presentation that it saw operating Ebitda growth for 2023 in the low single-digits while it forecast that energy costs per ton of cement would rise 10%. It also forecast a low single-digit decline in cement volumes. Actinver analyst Valentin Mendoza said in a note that the outlook was below his estimate for 9% growth in Ebitda this year.
Scotiabank analyst Francisco Suarez said recent results in the US and Europe support Cemex’s around 50% rally since late October. Higher electricity costs may be to blame for the company’s outlook on energy prices after fuel costs have fallen, he said.
“A soft landing and reduced pressures from energy fuels should unfold operating leverage,” he said in a note.
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