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ublicly listed plantation firms reported shining results from their nine-month operations as net profits soared on the back of soaring sales and selling prices.

Sampoerna Agro (SGRO), part of the Sampoerna Group, saw its net profit skyrocket by 10 times to stand at Rp 310.84 billion (US$25.55 million) from its operations between January and September.

Sampoerna investor relations head Michael Kesuma said that the positive result was driven by higher crude palm oil (CPO) sales volume and higher CPO selling prices.

Data from its latest financial report shows that the company sold 240,000 tons of CPO during the first nine months of this year, up 33 percent from 180,000 tons booked a year ago. The average CPO average selling price (ASP) also went up by almost 29 percent to Rp 8,500 per kilogram from Rp 6,600 per kilogram.

At the same time, Sampoerna sold a higher volume of palm kernel as well to 57,150 tons from 45,800 tons in the January-September period of last year. ASP also surged by 66 percent to Rp 5,150 per kilogram from Rp 3,100 per kilogram during the same periods.

'€œOf course, this eventually boosted our total sales,'€ Michael said during a telephone interview on Thursday.

According to the report, Sampoerna'€™s overall sales soared 72.1 percent to Rp 2.48 trillion. More than 95 percent of the figure was generated by palm oil-related sales, while the rest was made up of sales of other products, such as sago and rubber.

Sampoerna, Michael said, was optimistic that CPO price would improve compared to last year. '€œIt rebounded between September and October after falling for some time since March. It has been stable for the past three weeks and that is a good sign,'€ he said.

Meanwhile, higher net profits were also recorded by London Sumatra Indonesia (LSIP) and Salim Ivomas Pratama (SIMP) in the first nine months, both of which are part of conglomerate Indofood Group.

According to London Sumatra'€™s report, its bottom line surged almost 60 percent year-on-year to stand at Rp 698.64 billion. From January to September, it booked higher sales value even though its sales volume was flat.

The company'€™s operational data revealed that it sold a total of 327,251 tons of CPO that generated Rp 2.76 trillion in CPO sales. Its total sales '€” which also came from palm kernel, rubber and open pollinated seeds '€” reached Rp 3.52 trillion, up 21.8 percent from the previous year.

Salim Ivomas booked even higher growth in its net profit, climbing by more than three times to Rp 557.37 billion. Meanwhile, its total sales amounted to Rp 10.77 trillion by the end of September, 13 percent higher from a year ago.

'€œ[The increase in sales was] mainly attributable to higher sales volume of name brand cooking oil and margarine as well as higher average selling prices of palm oil products and edible oil and fats products,'€ Salim Ivomas wrote in a statement.

Besides CPO, Salim Ivomas'€™ products also consist of palm kernel, sugar, rubber, cooking oil, margarine and coconut oil.

Another company, Dharma Satya Nusantara (DSNG) '€” part of the Triputra Group '€” booked Rp 517.5 billion, an increase of more than four times in the January to September period.

'€œDuring the first nine months of the year, the company'€™s average CPO selling price reached Rp 8.52 million per ton, significantly higher than the average selling price in the first nine months of 2013 of Rp 6.67 million per ton,'€ Dharma Satya said in a statement.

According to its operational report, Dharma Satya'€™s CPO sales were up 22.6 percent to 293,606 tons. In the end, its total sales value stood at Rp 3.73 trillion, almost 40 percent higher from the
previous year.

Separately, Astra Agro Lestari (AALI), a subsidiary of giant Astra International, booked doubled net profit to Rp 1.88 trillion in the nine-month period as its CPO selling price improved.

Astra Agro corporate secretary Tofan Mahdi said that the firm was on track with its 5 to 10 percent production target to reach 30 million tons this year.