ST. PAUL, Minn., Jan. 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- CHS Inc. (NASDAQ: CHSCP), the nation's leading farmer-owned cooperative and a global energy, grains and foods company, today reported net income of $242.2 million for the first quarter of its 2014 fiscal year.

Earnings for the period Sept. 1 - Nov. 30, 2013, declined 30 percent from $343.7 million recorded in the first quarter of fiscal 2013. The decrease was largely attributed to reduced refining margins in the company's energy business. Revenues for the quarter were $11.0 billion, down slightly from $11.7 billion for the same period in fiscal 2013, primarily due to lower average selling prices for grains and oilseeds the company handles.

While overall fiscal 2014 first quarter results for the company's Energy segment declined from the same period a year ago, earnings for CHS propane, lubricants and transportation businesses increased. The CHS propane and transportation businesses generated record earnings for the quarter due to a compressed, high-demand harvest season in much of the company's trade area. Earnings for the company's renewable fuels marketing business declined slightly for the quarter.

Fiscal 2014 first quarter earnings for the CHS Ag segment - which includes domestic and global grain and crop nutrients businesses, local retail operations and processing and food ingredients - increased slightly over the same period a year ago. This was primarily due to higher margins and service income at local retail operations. Earnings also increased for the company's grain marketing business which achieved strong logistics performance. CHS processing and food ingredients operations experienced an earnings increase compared to the same period the previous year, primarily related to its soybean crushing and refining businesses.

CHS reports earnings for its food-related joint ventures and business services under Corporate and Other. Earnings for the quarter increased over the same period a year ago for the CHS shares of vegetable oil-based foods manufacturer and distributor Ventura Foods, LLC, and wheat milling company Horizon Milling, LLC. Combined earnings for CHS hedging, finance and insurance businesses declined slightly during the first quarter of fiscal 2014 compared with the first quarter of fiscal 2013.

CHS Inc. (www.chsinc.com) is a leading global agribusiness owned by farmers, ranchers and cooperatives across the United States. Diversified in energy, grains and foods, CHS is committed to helping its customers, farmer-owners and other stakeholders grow their businesses through its domestic and global operations. CHS, a Fortune 100 company, supplies energy, crop nutrients, grain marketing services, animal feed, food and food ingredients, along with business solutions including insurance, financial and risk management services. The company operates petroleum refineries/pipelines and manufactures, markets and distributes Cenex(®) brand refined fuels, lubricants, propane and renewable energy products.

This document contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that are based on management's current expectations and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the potential results discussed in the forward-looking statements. The company undertakes no obligations to publicly revise any forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances. For a discussion of additional factors that may materially affect management's estimates and predictions, please view the CHS Inc. annual report filed on Form 10-K for the year ended Aug. 31, 2013, which can be found on the Securities and Exchange Commission web site (www.sec.gov) or on the CHS web site www.chsinc.com. 



                                                        CHS Inc. Earnings



                                                            By segment



                                                         (in millions $)


                                                                          For the Three Months
                                                                                 Ended

                                                                               Nov. 30,

                                                                             2014             2013
                                                                             ----             ----



    Energy                                                                 $128.9           $253.0

    Ag                                                                      116.7            112.4

    Corporate and Other                                                      24.1             16.5

     Income before income taxes                                             269.7            381.9

     Income taxes                                                           (26.7)           (36.0)
                                                                            -----            -----

     Net income                                                             243.0            345.9

     Net income attributable to non-controlling interests                    (0.8)            (2.2)
                                                                             ----             ----

     Net income attributable to CHS Inc.                                   $242.2           $343.7
                                                                           ======           ======

SOURCE CHS Inc.