The group, which owns the world's biggest container shipping company, Maersk Line, and produces oil and gas mainly in the North Sea, is seen swinging back into the black thanks to a recovery of the shipping business which suffered last year.
It is expected to post a net profit of 9.12 billion Danish crowns ($1.57 billion) for the first half of 2010, against a loss of 3.67 billion in the corresponding period last year, according to the mean of 12 analysts' estimates.
The net result figure in this poll is the share of the net result attributable to A.P. Moller-Maersk, which differs from the headline net result figure.
Improvement of the container shipping business led Maersk on July 8 to raise its guidance for full-year results, saying it expected its 2010 profit to exceed the profit for 2008 which was $3.5 billion, corresponding to 17.6 billion crowns at the time.
It said that the new outlook depended on freight rates, oil prices and exchange rates remaining stable and added that the forecast included an accounting gain from its sale of shares in the Yantian port terminal in China.
"The container (shipping) market has turned around in the last half year. Strongly increased volumes have absorbed the inactive fleet and new vessels and further, volumes have led to significantly higher rates," Sydbank analyst Jacob Pedersen said in a research note to clients.
Maersk is expected to report a 16.7 percent rise in sales to 148.7 billion crowns, compared to 127.4 billion crowns in the same period last year when Maersk suffered from a deep plunge in the container market and low freight rates.
