Mondi: Stock rallies as Q1 profit rises

MONDI shares rallied a sixth day to an all-time high after a jump in first-quarter profit bolstered investors’ expectations for the rest of the year. The largest producer of kraft paper and industrial bags in Europe said on May 13 earnings rose 29 percent as sales volumes advanced and input costs declined. The company was focused on growing its packaging business, chief executive David Hathorn said. The performance “implied that only 1 percent growth was required in the remainder of the year to meet full-year consensus expectations”, David O’Brien, an analyst at Goodbody, said. Mondi closed up 1.42 percent to R279.35 yesterday. – Bloomberg