Unilever bounces to profitability after 9-month loss of N2.06bn in 2020

Unilever Nigeria, one of the country’s notable players in the Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) industry, has returned to profitability after a hard 2020 as improved sales helped boost profit.

The Lagos-based company reported a 152 percent jump in its nine-month profit after tax in 2021 to N1.08 billion from a loss of N2.06 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2020.

Analysis of the financial result by Unilever Nigeria for the period ended September 30 2021 revealed the company grew its revenue by 31.28 percent to N58.72 billion from N N44.73billion in the comparable period of last year.

Compared to the N0.541billion profit reported in the 9-month ended September 2020, the 2021 profit is higher than the pre-pandemic year by 99.63 percent.

The consumer goods firm came under pressure in the review period of 2020 as Nigerian consumers held back spending and adjusted their consumption patterns in light of the coronavirus impact on their income.

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But, with full re-opening of the Nigerian economy following the government’s ease in lockdown restrictions, Unilever Nigeria and other industry players have seen an increase in sales amid the gradual rise in consumers’ purchasing power.

Analysis of the 9-month financials of Unilever revealed that the revenue generated in the review period came from food products and home & personal care. The company generated N30.47 billion from food products while the remaining N28.26 billion was from home & personal care.

While the cost of sales was up to N42,86 billion in the review period from N34.85 billion reported in the comparable period of 2020, the company’s gross profit, the measure of its efficiency rate, increased by 60.63 percent to N15.87 billion in 2021 to N9.88 billion in the same period of 2021.

Involved in the manufacturing and marketing of foods and food ingredients as well as home and personal care products, Unilever Nigeria was in 2014, listed among the top 20 most valuable companies quoted on the Nigerian Exchange Group. Unilever Nigeria PLC is a subsidiary of Unilever Overseas Holding.

While Unilever Nigeria may have returned to profitability in the 9-month of 2021, the company’s financial results showed its N1.08 billion profit in the review period is still far behind the N9.57 billion reported in 2018 before the pandemic.

Meanwhile, in 2017 a similar year to 2021, a period after Africa’s largest economy exited recession, Unilever Nigeria reported a report of N4.83 billion, higher than the 2021 figure by N3.75 billion.