Daily Brief Energy/Materials: Aarti Industries, Saudi Aramco, ACME Solar Holdings, Huhtamaki OYJ, Geopark Ltd, Dynacor Group , KEIWA and more

• New CEO Suyog appointed in Q1 FY2025, who held leadership roles at Reliance Industries (RIL IN) and McKinsey & Company.
• Aarti Industries (ARTO IN) reported 28% revenue growth, 52% EBITDA growth and 95% PAT growth on YoY basis.
• Company become cautious about its FY25 EBITDA guidance of Rs. 1,450-1,700 crore, given global headwinds such as the Red Sea crisis and Chinese dumping.

• Aramco’s Q2 operating revenue grew 5.7% YoY but missed estimates by 0.3%. Meanwhile, net profit fell by 3.4% YoY but its EPS edged past estimates by 0.8%.
• Total hydrocarbon production fell 8.9% YoY to 12.3 mboepd while crude oil realisations rose 8.8% YoY.
• In Q2, Aramco declared dividends totalling USD 31.1 billion, despite an 18.1% YoY decline in free cash flow to USD 19 billion.

• ACME Solar Holdings (1700918D IN) is looking to raise US$360m in its upcoming India IPO. 
• ACME Solar (ACME) is a renewable energy firm with a portfolio of solar, wind, hybrid and firm and dispatchable renewable energy (FDRE) projects.
• In this note, we talk about the company’s historical performance.

Lucror Analytics’ ESG Scores are based on a 3-tiered scale and are adjusted for Controversies (if applicable).
We assess Huhtamaki’s ESG as “Strong”, in line with its Governance score, while the company’s Environmental and Social pillars are “Adequate”. Controversies are “Immaterial” and Disclosure is “Strong”. 

• 2Q24 production of 35,608 boe/d had been already reported.
• Production in Brazil has not been restored yet and is expected to restart only at the end of October.
• In light of (1) the longer than expected shutdown and uncertain restart date in Brazil (FY23 production was ~1 mboe/d) and (2) increased frequency and duration of blockades around the operations in Colombia, there is a downside risk of 1.5-2.5 mboe/d to the FY24 production guidance of 35.5-39 mboe/d (excluding Argentina and the contribution of any exploration success).

• DNG continued to take advantage of the high gold price in Q2, beating revenue and profitability estimates, boosting its cash balance and reducing development risk as it enters its next phase of growth.
• Dynacor posted record cash gross operating margin of $346/oz AuEq sold, compared to $234/oz in Q2/23 and our estimate of $233/oz.
• DNG added to its strong balance sheet with $35M in cash (up from $28M in December 2023), $55M in working capital, and negligible debt.

• Revenue grew 30.5% YoY to JPY9.6bn, operating profit increased 248.3% YoY to JPY2.1bn, and recurring profit rose 176.7% YoY to JPY2.6bn.
• Revenue from optical sheets for laptops/tablets and automobiles drove growth, with Opasuki® and Opalus® products contributing significantly.
• The company revised its full-year forecast, expecting JPY19.8bn revenue, JPY3.1bn operating profit, JPY3.3bn recurring profit, and JPY2.2bn net income.