The Nation Newspaper

Category: Equities

  • Afromedia records N1.78b loss on N494.4m turnover

    Afromedia Plc recorded a net loss of N1.78 billion on a turnover of N494.4 million in 2017, continuing a losing streak that had marked the operations of the media and communications company.

    Key extracts of the audited report and accounts of Afromedia Plc for the year ended September 30, 2017 showed that the company recorded total income of N494.41 million in 2017 as against N407.25 million in 2016. However, loss before tax stood at N1.776 billion in 2017 compared with N2.745 billion in 2016. After taxes, net loss stood at N1.782 billion in 2017 as against N2.751 billion in 2016. With this, loss per share stood at 40 kobo in 2017 as against 62 kobo in 2016.

    The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) had two weeks ago placed a full suspension on trading in the shares of Afromedia, a precautionary order usually place on companies on regulatory watch-list for further sanctions or possible delisting.

    In a circular obtained by The Nation, the Exchange indicated that it took the decision to suspend trading on Afromedia after the company failed to submit its corporate earnings reports as required by the listing requirements at the secondary market.

    Rule 3.1 of the Rulebook of the Exchange-Rules for Filing of Accounts and Treatment of Default Filing, states that if a company fails to file the relevant accounts by the expiration of the cure period, the Exchange will send a second filing deficiency notification to the company within two business days after the end of the cure period and immediately suspend trading in the company’s shares.

    “In accordance with the rules set forth above, the suspension of the afore-listed company will only be lifted upon the submission of the relevant accounts, provided the Exchange is satisfied that the accounts comply with all applicable rules of the Exchange,” the circular stated.

    Incorporated in 1959 and listed on the NSE in 2009, the Afromedia Group consists of five subsidiaries and associated companies. These include Afromedia Gambia Limited, Afromedia Africa Propriety Limited, Optmedia Limited, Outdoor Exchange West Africa Limited and Independent Poster Care Limited.

     

  • GTB records N52.6b profit in 3 months

    Nigeria’s most capitalised financial institution, Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) Plc recorded modest growths in key performance indicators in the first quarter of this year with pre-tax profit for the three-month period rising to N52.62 billion.

    Key extracts of the interim report and accounts of GTB for the first quarter ended March 31, 2018 released yesterday at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) showed that gross earnings rose to N108.97 billion in first quarter 2018 as against N104.13 billion recorded in first quarter 2017. Profit before tax also improved from N50.39 billion in first quarter 2017 to N52.62 billion in first quarter 2018. After taxes, net profit rose from N41.48 billion in first quarter 2017 to N44.67 billion in first quarter 2018. Earnings per share thus increased from N1.47 to N1.58.

    The report showed that the balance sheet of the bank-the second most capitalised quoted company in Nigeria, after Dangote Cement, expanded further to N3.507 trillion by March 2018 as against N3.351 trillion recorded at the beginning of this year.

    Market analysts have commended the performance of the bank noting that it indicates that the bank could surpass projections.

    “GTB’s first quarter 2018 results are tracking slightly ahead of consensus 2018 estimated profit before tax forecast of N203 billion. Consequently, we expect to see modest upward revisions to consensus 2018 estimated profit before tax forecasts and a positive reaction from the market,” FBN Quest, the investment banking arm of FBN Holdings Plc, stated.

    GTB’s share price rose by 0.57 per cent or 25 kobo to close at N44.35 per share yesterday at the NSE, playing the contrarian stock against the market’s average overall decline of 0.04 per cent.

    GTB had recorded a pre-tax profit of N200 billion in 2017, prompting the bank to distribute N79.5 billion as cash dividend to shareholders. Shareholders received a final dividend of N2.40 per share, in addition to interim dividend of 30 kobo per share, bringing total dividend per share for 2017 N2.70 per share.

    Latest audited report and accounts of GTB for the year ended December 31, 2017 showed that profit before tax rose by 21 per cent from N165.1 billion in 2016 to N200.2 billion in 2017. Profit after tax also increased from N132.28 billion in 2016 to N170.47 billion in 2017. Earnings per share improved to N6.03 in 2017 compared with N4.67 in 2016. Gross earnings had increased marginally from N414.6 billion in 2016 to N419.2 billion.

    The balance sheet showed that the bank’s loan book dipped by 8.9 per cent from N1.59 trillion in 2016 to N1.449 trillion in 2017 while customer deposits increased by 3.8 per cent to N2.062 trillion in 2017 as against N1.986 trillion in 2016. Total assets and contingents grew by 3.9 per cent to N3.845 trillion in 2017 while shareholders’ funds increased to N625.2 billion.

    Managing Director, Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) Plc, Mr. Segun Agbaje, said the immediate past year was a pivotal year for the bank as it was able to deliver a strong result in a challenging environment.

    According to him, the bank achieved record growth in earnings, carefully managed cost margins and leveraged its digital-first customer-centric strategy to deliver world-class services that are simple, cheap and easily accessible.

    “The result demonstrates the fundamental strength of our franchise as well as the progress we are making in transforming our organization into a platform on which our customers could build their businesses, connect with their consumers and access all the resources that they need to make their lives better,” Agbaje said.

     

     

  • Sterling Bank grows net profit by 65% to N8.5b in 2017

    Sterling Bank Plc recorded strong growths in the top-line and bottom-line in 2017 as the commercial bank rode on the back of widening income sources and improving operating efficiency to increase net earnings by 65 per cent.

    Key extracts of the audited report and accounts of Sterling Bank for the year ended December 31, 2017 released at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) yesterday showed considerable improvements in key performance indices.

    The report showed that gross earnings rose by 19.8 per cent from N111.4 billion in 2016 to N133.5 billion. Profit before tax increased to N8.61 billion in 2017 as against N6.0 billion in 2016. Profit after tax grew by 65 per cent from N5.16 billion in 2016 to N8.52 billion in 2017.

    Top-line performance was driven by growth in both interest and non-interest income, which rose by 11.3 per cent and 87.8 per cent respectively. The bank’s net operating income increased by 7.9 per cent while cost-to-income ratio improved by 260 basis points to 71.5 per cent. Customer deposits increased by 17.1 per cent to N684.8 billion in 2017 as against N584.7 billion in 2016. Shareholders’ funds rose by 20.2 per cent to N102.9 billion in 2017 as against N85.7 billion in 2016, reaffirming the bank’s commitment to returning value to its shareholders.

    The board of directors of the bank has recommended distribution of N575.8 million as cash dividend for the 2017 business year, representing a dividend per share of 2.0 kobo.

    Chief Executive Officer, Sterling Bank Plc, Mr. Abubakar Suleiman, said the 2017 performance that highlighted positive performance across key financial indices despite challenging operating conditions reaffirms the bank’s underlying institutional strength.

    “The non-interest banking business continued to gain significant traction, adding positively to our bottom-line. This performance underscores the commitment of the entire team to our corporate goals and the resilience of our business model,” Suleiman said.

    He said the bank maintained a disciplined and prudent approach to loan growth in line with its risk management framework, a development which resulted in a significant improvement in asset quality as reflected in the reduction of non-performing loan ratio by 370 basis points to 6.2 per cent.

    He noted that the bank continued to scale its business with support from a well-diversified funding base, pointing out that for the first time, the bank recorded N1.1 trillion in total assets from N834.2 billion in 2016, representing a 28.7 per cent growth.

    According to him, the bank also gained traction in its retail drive with an active customer base that exceeded three million resulting in 17.1 per cent growth in deposits. During the year, the bank’s liquidity and capital adequacy ratios remained sound and well above the required regulatory benchmark at 33 per cent and 12.2 per cent respectively. The bank prioritized efficiency across its businesses as it progressed on its digital transformation journey by successfully launching “Specta”, an innovative online lending platform which offers personal loans within five minutes. It also invested in a first-rate business process management tool to optimize operating efficiency while providing its customers with ‘best in class’ service.

     

     

     

  • Investors swap major stakes in FCMB

    Investors swap major stakes in FCMB

    Investors staked more than N2.35 billion on the shares of FCMB Group yesterday at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), closing voluminous deals that saw transfer of 4.8 per cent equities of the financial services holding group.

    Trading on FCMB Group accounted for about 60 per cent of the total turnover volume at the stock market yesterday. Investors staked N2.352 billion on 952.58 million ordinary shares of FCMB Group. The board of directors of FCMB Group has recommended distribution of N1.98 billion as cash dividend for the 2017 business, representing a dividend per share of 10 kobo. It had paid the same amount for the 2016 business year.

    FCMB Group’s share price appreciated by 5.0 per cent or 12 kobo to close at N2.52 per share, indicating a positive underlying sentiment for trading in the shares of the holding group. Key extracts of the audited report and accounts of FCMB Group for the year ended December 31, 2017 showed that group deposits grew to N689.9 billion in 2017, an increase of five per cent on N657.6 billion recorded in 2016. Group capital adequacy ratio also improved to 16.9 per cent in 2017 as against 16.7 per cent in 2016. Asset base also increased to N1.19 trillion in 2017 compared with N1.17 trillion in 2016. Non-interest income stood at N32 billion in 2017 while loans and advances totalled N649.8 billion during the year.

    Headline figures however showed a top-down decline in actual figures. Gross earnings dropped from N176.35 billion in 2016 to N169.88 billion in 2017. Profit before tax declined from N16.25 billion to N11.46 billion. Profit after tax also dropped from N14.34 billion to N9.41 billion. Consequently, earnings per share dropped from 72 kobo in 2016 to N48 kobo in 2017.

    Trading in FCMB Group boosted the momentum of activities at the Exchange as total turnover jumped to 1.60 billion shares valued at N10.91 billion in 4,729 deals. United Bank for Africa was the second most active stock with a turnover of 382.47 million shares worth N4.21 billion while Zenith Bank placed third with 65.23 million shares valued at N1.76 billion.

    Benchmark valuation indices at the Exchange showed a positive overall market situation, with most deals closed at premium. The All Share Index (ASI)-the value based index that tracks share prices at the Exchange rose by 0.63 per cent to close at 40,788.68 points as against its opening index of 40,533.37 points. Aggregate market value of all quoted equities rose from its opening value of N14.641 trillion to close at N14.734 trillion, representing net capital gain of N93 billion. Average year-to-date return trended upward to 6.66 per cent.

    With nearly two gainers for every loser, most sectoral indices closed on the upside. The NSE Oil & Gas Index appreciated by 2.0 per cent. The NSE Banking Index rose by 1.3 per cent. The NSE Consumer Goods Index inched up by 0.6 per cent while the NSE Industrial Goods Index posted a modest gain of 0.1 per cent. However, the NSE Insurance Index declined by 0.7 per cent.

    “In line with our projection, we expect market performance to remain buoyed by increased bargain hunting as investors take advantage of attractive entry prices in the market,” Afrinvest Securities stated.

    Nestle Nigeria-NSE’s highest-priced stock led the 33-stock gainers’ list with a gain of N12.50 to close at N1,422.50. Beta Glass followed with a gain of N3.55 to close at N75.50 while GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Nigeria rose by N2.65 to close at N34. On the negative side, Okomu Oil Palm led the 18-stock losers’ list with a drop of N3.15 to close at N73.50. Presco followed with a loss of N1.35 to close at N68.65 while Cement Company of Northern Nigeria lost 65 kobo to close at N19.50 per share.

     

  • Custodian and Allied grows profit by 37% to N7.3b

    Custodian and Allied Plc witnessed significant improvement in its profitability in 2017 as the group’s profit after tax rose by 37 per cent from N5.3 billion in 2016 to N7.3 billion in 2017. Gross revenue increased from N38.55 billion in 2016 to N43.05 billion in 2017.

    The Board of Directors of the company has recommended the payment of a final dividend of 32 kobo for every 50 kobo ordinary share. The company had earlier paid an interim dividend of 10 kobo per share, bringing total dividend per share to 42 kobo.

    Custodian and Allied is a non-bank financial institution with investments in life and non-life insurance, pension fund administration, trusteeship and property holding businesses.

    The company has consistently paid dividends to its shareholders every year for the past 20 years. The company was incorporated on August 22, 1991 as a private limited liability company under the name, Accident and General Insurance Company Limited. Approval for the change of name to Custodian and Allied Insurance Limited was granted on February 5, 1993, while approval for conversion to a public limited liability company was given on the September 29, 2006. Following a special resolution the change of name of the company to Custodian and Allied Plc was approved by the Corporate Affairs Commission on March 20, 2013.

     

  • Fidson Healthcare increases dividend payout by 300%

    The Board of Directors of Fidson Healthcare Plc has approved a 300 per cent increase in dividend payout for the 2017 business year as the healthcare company grew its net profit by 238 per cent during the year.

    Shareholders will receive a dividend per share of 20 kobo for the 2017 business year, representing an increase of 300 per cent on 5.0 kobo dividend per share paid for the 2016 business year. The company had distributed N75 million as cash dividends to shareholders for the 2016 business year.

    Key extracts of the audited report and accounts of Fidson Healthcare for the year ended December 31, 2017 showed that turnover grew by 84 per cent N7.6 billion in 2016 to N14 billion in 2017. Cost of sales increased by 91 per cent from N3.6 billion in 2016 to N6.9 billion in 2017. Profit before tax rose from N443 million in 2016 to N1.57 billion in 2017. With this, earnings per share increased from 21 kobo in 2016 to 71 kobo in 2017.

    The financial reports showed a 53 per cent increase in total overhead including administrative, selling and distribution expenses, from N3.1 billion in 2016 to N4.7 billion in 2017, which was due to an increase in the marketing and distribution expenses.  Finance cost also increased by 45 per cent from N690 million in 2016 to N1 billion in 2017. The increase in finance cost was mainly due to increased working capital to drive growth and a hike in interest rates from financial institutions. Despite the increase in total cost, the company recorded a 127 per  cent increase in operating profit, which grew from N1.1 billion in 2016 to N2.5 billion in 2017.

    The company management stated that the significant competitive advantage of the company’s World Health Organisation (WHO) Certifiable Plant is already evident after one full calendar year in operation.

    According to the company, products from the new facility as well as volume increase from existing products were largely responsible for its remarkable growth in 2017. The plant increased the company’s factory-based revenue by over 200 per cent in 2017—primarily due to an increase in production volumes and the introduction of new product lines. A portion of its new products are medicines that cater to low income earners, with the quality consumers have come to expect from Fidson, assured.

    “The company is highly focused on extensive brand building as part of its long-term strategy and aims to expand its Intravenous fluid lines in order to meet demands. Her new manufacturing facility, which is compliant with and on course to receive the WHO certification within 12 to 15 months—satisfying the African and global pharmaceuticals markets’ need for compliance and regulation, will drive this expansion,” the company said at the weekend.

    The company noted that it has broadened its products base, stimulate financial growth and increase its capacity to ensure the healthcare demands of Nigerians are adequately met.

    “The maximisation of profitability, as well as growth opportunities, are paramount to Fidson Healthcare Plc,” the company stated.

    At the last annual general meeting in Lagos, shareholders authorised the Fidson Healthcare board of directors to “raise further capital up to N6 billion through an offer either by way of public offering, rights issue, or private and special placement of shares”.

    The meeting also authorised the directors to absorb oversubscription and convert existing loans due to any person from the company towards payment for any rights or shares subscribed for.

    Shareholders also increased the authorised share capital of the company from N1.2 billion to N1.5 billion by the creation of additional 600 million shares of 50 kobo each.

    Fidson Healthcare Plc Chairman, Mr. Felix Ohiwerei, who spoke at the meeting,  said the additional capital would be used to boost working capital that had been negatively impacted by Naira depreciation.

    He noted that the company’s new factory came on stream at the tail end of the last business year and the company needs additional capital to realise the full potential and utilise the new factory to full capacity.

    He added that the company had through new infusion lines that it recently commissioned, introduced new products into the market.

    “The completion of our new factory and the concentration of production on one site is an important milestone for the company. The board is confident that the company is in a very good position to remain a leading player in the industry,” Ohiwerei said.

     

     

  • Nigerian Breweries explains 100% dividend payout

    Nigerian Breweries, one of five largest companies listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange and pioneer largest brewing company in Nigeria, has explained that its decision to pay out its entire net profit after tax as cash dividend to shareholders demonstrated its strong performance and confidence over its operations.

    Nigerian Breweries has recommended a total dividend of N33 billion for the 2017 financial year. The recommendation, which amounted to a total dividend of N4.13 per ordinary share of 50 kobo each is a 100 per cent payout of net profit, making it the third year in a row that the company is delivering such to its shareholders.

    At a media briefing in Lagos, its Managing Director, Mr. Jordi Borrut Bel, explained that the 100 per cent payout is a reflection of strong balance sheet and overall health of the company.

    He pointed out that the N33 billion dividend payout is a considerable increase over the N28 billion paid for the 2016 business year. The company had earlier paid an interim dividend of N7.97 billion in November 2017, which amounted to N1.00 per share. The final dividend will, therefore, be N25.03 billion, which comes to N3.13 per share.

    Accorrding to him, the turnover of N345 billion, which resulted in a N33 billion profit after tax for the 2017 financial year was as a result of the continuous focus on cost leadership.

    He noted that cost leadership initiatives, which encompass cost optimisation, revenue management and consumer value re-engineering, yielded savings which positively impacted on the company’s financials.

    An analysis of the company’s audited results showed that its profit after tax represented a 16 per cent increase from the N28.4 billion achieved in 2016, and a 10 per cent growth in turnover in 2017 from N314 billion in the preceding period.

    Borrut Bel added that the company remained confident of its clear strategy to deliver good returns on investment to shareholders as part of its commitment to “Winning with Nigeria”.

    “When all factors are considered, our results have been positive and creditable over the years. Despite the deterioration in consumer purchasing power, our robust brand portfolio which  covers a broad spectrum of consumer needs enabled us to protect revenue and profitability,” Borrut Bel said.

    He added that the company aims to use its brands as a positive for change while managing its products to protect people and their environments, which was why over N175 billion was invested in developing world-class brewing facilities in the past five years.

    He said the company remains committed to local content development as some of the raw materials like sorghum are gotten from Nigeria.

    According to him, the company, in conjunction with Heineken Supply chain B.V of the Netherlands and other Heineken companies, is involved in the activities aimed at the development of new hybrid sorghum varieties with the potential of increasing the output for sorghum farmers as well as improving the quality of sorghum malt, which is a major raw material input in their operations. Two  high yielding varieties have been developed and registered by the company; the process of commercialisation of these hybrids is on-going. The company has entered into supply agreements with local cassava starch processors whose activities have impacted positively in the communities where they operate. They have an offtake arrangement with a multinational company that has huge investment in the sugarcane value chain. This is aimed at replacing improved sugar in the company’s recipe with a local substitute.

    He noted that the company also ensures that it gives back to the community in terms of corporate social responsibility (CSR) by spearheading the football team and making visible social impact in many spheres, notably health, education, sport, water and community development among others.

     

  • LafargeHolcim increases stake in Lafarge Africa

    LafargeHolcim-the world leader in building materials and majority foreign core investor in Lafarge Africa Plc, has increased its equity in the Nigerian subsidiary to 76.32 per cent to control the much-needed three-quarters percentage shareholdings necessary for major corporate changes.

    A latest review of the shareholding structure of Lafarge Africa indicated that LafargeHolcim took advantage of the recent rights issue by Lafarge Africa to increase its majority stake by 4.97 percentage points from pre-rights issue position of 71.35 per cent to 76.32 per cent after the rights issue.

    LafargeHolcim had picked up its rights fully and further subscribed to the un-allotted shares, thus raising its percentage shareholding. LafargeHolcim had earlier indicated it would subscribe fully to its rights under a debt-for-equities deal that will see conversion of LafargeHolcim’s dollar-based loan to equities.

    Lafarge Africa three weeks ago listed about 3.1 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each. The supplementary shares arose from the cement company’s recent rights issue. Lafarge Africa had on November 24, 2017 launched an offer to raise N131.65 billion through a rights issue of about 3.1 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at N42.50 per share. The new shares were pre-allotted to shareholders on the basis of five new ordinary shares for every nine ordinary shares held as at the close of business on November 1, 2017. The acceptance list opened on Friday November 24, 2017 and ran till the close of business on Friday, December 15, 2017.

    With the listing of the additional shares totalling 3.098 billion ordinary shares, the total issued and fully paid up shares of Lafarge Africa increased from 5.576 billion to 8.673 billion ordinary shares.

    Chairman, Lafarge Africa Plc, Mr. Mobolaji Balogun, has said the recapitalisation would help reduce the group’s exposure to adverse foreign currency translation losses as experienced in 2016, following a 40 per cent depreciation of the Naira against the Dollar.

    Balogun noted that LafargeHolcim’s decision  to convert existing loans to equity demonstrates the core investor’s continued belief in the Nigeria story, pointing out that the rights issue is the largest so far in the Nigerian capital market and the largest investment in a listed company by an investor.

    According to him, the rights issue will help to reduce the group’s foreign currency exposure by 50 per cent while the remaining portion of the debt, with the support from LafargeHolcim, has been refinanced and hedged for 12 months.

  • Lafarge Africa to pay N13.01b dividend

    The board of directors of Lafarge Africa Plc has recommended distribution of N13.01 billion to shareholders as cash dividend for the 2017 business year. The dividend represents 43 per cent increase on the dividend payout for the 2016 business year.

    For the second consecutive trading session, Lafarge Africa’s share price rose by 35 kobo to close at N44 yesterday at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), playing a contrarian stock to the negative average day-on-day overall market return of -0.09 per cent. The cement company’s share price had risen by N1.25 or 2.95 per cent on Wednesday.

    A breakdown of the dividend recommendation showed that shareholders will receive a dividend per share of N1.50, 42.9 per cent above N1.05 per share paid for the 2016 business year. The company has indicated that the dividend would be paid from its 2012/2013 pioneer profit reserve, implying that there would be no deduction of 10 per cent withholding tax.

    Chief Executive Officer, Lafarge Africa Plc, Michel Puchercos assured that the cement company has been positioned to extract greater values for shareholders noting that the company’s recurring earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) doubled to N57.6 billion in 2017.

    He attributed the strong margins in the Nigerian business to cost initiatives and more favourable pricing.

    According to him, Lafarge Africa’s industrial operations in 2017 were stable with plants operating at high reliability levels while the energy optimization plan for the company has been successful with increased use of alternative fuel and coal to offset gas shortages in operations in the Western Nigeria while plant operations in the eastern and northern part of the country relied mainly on gas and coal.

    He said these logistic, commercial and operational initiatives helped to sustain market share in the year under review.

    He pointed out that the South African business thrived in a challenging business environment, noting that operations in the country are set to stabilise in year 2018.

    He added that South Africa’s Lichtenburg plant returned to normal operations in the course of the year and a turnaround plan was initiated in order to transform the company’s operations.

    “The expected recovery in the macroeconomic environment in Nigeria is likely to have a positive impact in the overall cement market in Nigeria. Our Business turnaround actions will be consolidated further in 2018 through energy optimisation as well as commercial and logistic improvement. In 2018 we shall implement a continuous improvement programme that will see us building on earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) margins above the 35 per cent benchmark,” Puchercos said.

    He noted that the capital expenditure expectation for Nigeria will be mainly devoted to energy and production optimisation while the turnaround plan of the South African operations is focused on cost containment, commercial transformation and industrial stabilisation.

    “The overall goal is to create value for shareholders through an attractive growth profile and good margins,” Puchercos said.

    Meanwhile, key extracts of the audited report and accounts of Lafarge Africa for the year ended December 31, 2017 showed that the cement company’s group turnover rose by 36 per cent to N299.153 billion in 2017 as against N219.714 billion in 2016.  Gross profit also increased from N40.66 billion in 2016 to N50.759 billion in 2017. However, administrative expenses spiralled from N23.737 billion in 2016 to N41.595 billion in 2017. Finance cost also jumped from N38.216 billion to N43.216 billion due to high charges on over draft and bank borrowings. Lafarge Africa’s total loans and advances doubled to N256.546 billion in 2017 from N104.709 billion in 2016. With these, the company recorded a pre-tax loss of N34.03 billion in 2017. Lafarge had used tax credit of N39.99 billion in 2016 to mitigate pre-tax loss of N22.82 billion to end the year with a net profit of N16.9 billion in 2016. However, with no tax credit in 2017 and a tax expense of N281.46 million, the mid-line costs weighed heavily on the bottom-line.

    The decline in bottom-line performance was due to high administrative expenses and finance costs. Lafarge Africa however successfully raised N131 billion new equity funds through a rights issue in the last quarter of 2017, which is expected to restructure the balance sheet and deleverage the company, thus positively impacting finance costs.

    The company also noted that a detailed review of key projects in Nigeria such as the road in Calabar and of mothballed assets in South Africa led to an impairment of N19.1 billion.

    According to the company, the combination of these impairments and the net loss in South Africa of N187 billion led to a group net loss of N34.6 billion compared to a profit of N16.8 billion in 2016.

     

     

  • Jaiz Bank grows profit by 161% to N894m

    Jaiz Bank Plc-Nigeria’s pioneer non-interest commercial bank recorded significant growths in key performance indicators in 2017 with the Islamic bank making an average of a double of previous profit on every unit of transaction during the period.

    Key extracts of the audited report and accounts of Jaiz Bank for the year ended December 31, 2017 showed that pre-tax profit-margin-which measures the underlining profitability of the company- doubled from 5.5 per cent in 2016 to 11 per cent in 2017. The pre-tax profit margin denotes the efficiency of the core operational and administrative cost management, and it is usually taken as a more definitive index of performance than top-line margins.

    The report indicated a well-rounded performance as gross earnings rose by 40 per cent from N6.18 billion in 2016 to N8.10 billion in 2017. Gross profit grew by 34 per cent to N6.705 billion in 2017 as against N5.003 billion in 2016. Profit before tax jumped by 160.6 per cent from N343.02 million in 2016 to N894.01 million in 2017. However, the bank’s tax provision leapt by 1,024 per cent from N31.75 million in 2016 to N356.89 million in 2017. This moderated the net profit growth to 14.7 per cent from N311.27 million in 2016 to N356.89 million in 2017.

    The 2017 report is the first audited report to be submitted by Jaiz Bank as a publicly quoted company. Jaiz Bank had recorded another milestone on February 9, 2017 as the first non-interest financial institution to be listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) with the admission of the entire issued share capital of the bank to the main board of the Exchange.

    Speaking against the background of the performance of the bank recently, Managing Director, Jaiz Bank Plc, Hassan Usman attributed the impressive performance of the bank to the support from the board, management and staff of the bank and the commitment to the business model which is hinged on a better life for all stakeholders.

    “Gradually, we kept surpassing our challenges and are waxing stronger. Looking at what we have achieved over the short existence as a bank, I have a strong faith that Islamic banking is going to command a lot of respect and a force to reckon with in this country in the nearest future,” Usman said.

    He said the bank’s directors and management have ambitious ideas about what the bank would like to be, and with the supports of its shareholders, the bank is committed to ensuring it becomes a formidable player in the Nigerian financial market.

    He outlined that the bank would focus on opening more branches in different parts of the country and fostering its strategy of providing retail banking to a large segment of the society who are desirous of its products and services.

    “We are focused on building on our culture of ethics and taking the necessary decisions to align our perspective with client expectations,” Usman said.

    He assured that Jaiz Bank will continue to open up new vista of opportunities and provide a new future of wide-ranging financial services to all Nigerians adding that the bank has demonstrated its resilience in its formative years and now looks forward to the future with more optimism.

    He urged Nigerians, irrespective of their religious background, to embrace the concept of non-interest banking as alternative financing model.