Nigeria’s biggest company Dangote Cement Plc Tuesday reported a 16 per cent surge in revenue for 2020, culminating in its biggest annual sales ever, Premium Times has the report.
Total sales came to N1.034 trillion, N142.525 billion higher than the figure for the year before, the income statement of the cement-maker obtained by Premium Times showed.
It is an astounding run in the face of the pandemic that has plummeted economies, limiting building and construction activities.
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The group’s quarterly profit before tax (PBT) during the H1 2020, was N109.11 billion compared to the N42.19 billion reported at the same period the previous year. The quarterly revenue was N284.59 billion compared to the N212.06 billion reported the same period the previous year.
The Nigerian government in the third quarter of last year excluded Dangote Cement from its blockade on exports to other countries through land borders especially to West African neighbors Niger and Togo, thereby helping the group to ramp up sales, Chief Executive Officer Michel Puchercos said on an investor call, according to Bloomberg.
Profit before tax swelled by 49 per cent, rising from N250.479 billion to N373.310 billion.
Profit for the year advanced from N200.521 billion to N276.068 billion, translating to a 37.7 per cent jump. That lifted earnings per share from N11.79 to N16.14.
Earnings were limited by a N188 million provision for impaired assets as well as a surge in income tax expense from N49.958 billion to N97.242 billion, implying a 94.6 percent growth.
Shareholders fund dipped 0.8 per cent from N897.937 billion to N890.970 billion, following Dangote Cement’s buyback of 40.2 million units of its shares in December at the cost of N9.8 billion.
The company’s board on Friday proposed a N16 per share dividend totaling N272.648 billion for shareholders for 2020, the same amount it has paid shareholders every year in the past three years.
“I am delighted to report that Dangote Cement experienced its strongest year in terms of EBITDA and strongest year in terms of volumes. Despite a challenging environment, Group volumes for the year were up per cent and Group EBITDA was up 20.9 per cent,” Mr Puchercos said.
“Looking ahead, we have strengthened our Alternative Fuel initiative which focuses on leveraging the circular economy business model and reducing exposure of our cost base to foreign currencies fluctuations.”
Shares in Dangote Cement closed in Lagos on Tuesday at N220 per unit, trading up by 3.09%.
The growth is also attributed to the ingenuity of Mr. Puchercos, who joined Dangote Cement from rival company Lafarge last year, and has since turned the numbers up for the Nigerian cement giant.
Mr. Puchercos said: “Dangote Cement’s strategy to offer high quality products at competitive prices is meeting customers’ expectations in Nigeria and across the continent, where we continue to deploy excellent marketing initiatives and operational excellence.”