Oct 29 (Reuters) - Grain trader Bunge beat Wall Street estimates for third-quarter adjusted profit on Thursday, benefiting from robust processing margins for soybeans and other oilseeds.
The Missouri-based company posted an adjusted profit of $2.56 per share for the three months ended September 30, compared with analysts' average estimate of $2.44 per share, according to data compiled by LSEG.
• Quarterly net sales from soybean processing and refining were up 5.4% year-on-year at $11.4 billion in the quarter
• US corn and soybean prices have surged since the start of the Iran conflict, prompting farmers to accelerate sales of grain from last year's harvest after months of holding back supplies amid persistently weak prices
• The rally, fueled by US and Israeli strikes on Iran, has triggered a wave of selling across the Midwest, with farmers moving corn, soybeans and wheat from storage bins to ethanol makers and major grain handlers such as Archer-Daniels-Midland and Bunge
• Oil prices also spiked due to the war, which in turn raised prices for crops used to make biofuels [O/R]
• Bunge's softseed processing and refining segment reported quarterly net sales of $4.3 billion, compared with $3.6 billion a year ago
• Quarterly net sales at its grain merchandising and milling segment rose 5.2% to $6.76 billion
• Peer ADM is set to report results on November 3
(Reporting by Katha Kalia in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)