The earnings of NASCON Allied Industries Plc, a manufacturer of salt, vegetable oil, tomato paste and seasoning products in Nigeria, have surged to the highest in at least 12 years, data compiled by BusinessDay shows.
According to the company’s financial statement, its after-tax profit rose to N13.72 billion last year from N5.47 billion in 2022.
It also reported a net foreign exchange rate gain of N228.37 million in 2023 from a foreign exchange loss of N368.69 million in 2022.
“NASCON’s result was remarkable as the company remained profitable throughout the year on the back of strong fundamentals. We commend management’s efforts in managing cost pressures in the face of accelerating inflation and maintaining healthy and growing margins,” analysts at Cordros Research said in a recent note.
“Going into 2024, although we expect sustained stellar sales performance, we highlight that the depreciation of the local currency might pose some threat to margins,” they added.
Further findings from the company’s statement show that revenue rose to N80.8 billion from N58.8 billion while the cost of sales increased to N36.5 billion from N34.2 billion.
Other income increased to N194.3 million from N124.3 million. Other operating gains increased to N267.5 million from other operating losses of N794.6 million.
NASCON’s distribution costs increased to N18.99 billion from N12.04 billion.
The firm’s administrative expenses were N4.7 billion, up from N3.14 billion.
Total assets surged to N83.6 billion from N55.5 billion while total liabilities increased to N56.12 billion from N36.49 billion.
Total equity summed up to N27.5 billion from N19.04 billion. Net cash from operating activities rose to a positive N20.05 billion from N3.5 billion while net cash used in investing activities dropped to N893.51 million from N895.97 million.
Net cash from financing activities stood at a negative of N6.32 billion from a positive of N3.36 billion.
Impairment write-back on trade receivables stood at N8.96 million from an impairment charge on trade receivables of N24.06 million.
Impairment write-back on intercompany receivables dropped to N241,000 from N10.33 million.
Impairment write-back on staff loans amounted to N1.81 million from impairment charge on staff loans of N2.42 million.
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year surged to N25.6 billion from N13 billion. Basic and diluted earnings per share stood at N5.18, up from N2.06.
Inventories rose to N11.17 billion from N8.27 billion during the period reviewed.
