Syngenta aims to raise payouts

By Thomas Atkins

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Swiss agrochemicals giant Syngenta (SYNN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) plans to avoid a takeover-driven growth strategy in the U.S. market and will continue to increase payouts to shareholders as profitability rises, it said on Wednesday.

"The focus is on organic development, not necessarily acquisitions, but if opportunities arise, we will look at them," Syngenta finance chief Domenico Scala said at the Reuters Chemicals Summit.

The Basel, Switzerland-based company aims to return around $800 million to shareholders this year through a dividend increase and by issuing a put option giving shareholders the right to sell a fixed number of shares back to the company.

Syngenta aims for growth in earnings per share in the "double digit" percent range this year through 2008, meaning around 10-15 percent, as sales surge for pesticides and seeds and as cost cuts improve efficiency, Scala said.

"The dividend will be progressively in line with EPS growth," he said. EPS grew 31 percent to $7.67 per share in 2005. Scala said that future surplus cash that was not returned to shareholders would be invested back into the business.

SALES AND SEEDS

Syngenta broke the $8-billion sales barrier for the first time in 2005 and aims to fuel further growth by bringing new bug-resistant crops and weed-busting chemicals to market.

The company is working to introduce a number of new "trait" variations, or characteristics, into seed corn by 2008, in a bid to improve profits.  Continued...