Fatima Fertiliser earns Rs2b in Apr-Jun quarter

Strong sales attributed to higher urea demand before budget

KARACHI: Fatima Fertiliser’s profit increased 9% and reached Rs2.01 billion in the quarter ended June 30, 2017, which was driven by increased volumetric sales, according to a bourse filing on Thursday.

The fertiliser manufacturer had reported a profit of Rs1.85 billion in the corresponding period of previous financial year.



The company announced earnings per share (EPS) of Rs0.96, up 9% from Rs0.88 in the corresponding period of FY16. Its share price decreased 1%, or Rs0.31, to Rs29.99 with 493,500 shares changing hands at the Pakistan Stock Exchange on Thursday.

The company’s sales surged to Rs9.43 billion, up 25% from Rs7.51 billion in the corresponding period of previous year.



“Sales revenue surged on the back of elevated urea off-take due to expectation of an increase in urea prices post-budget (for) fiscal year 2018,” Taurus Securities said in its comments, “thereby, initiating bulk-buying behaviour by retailers in May-June 2017, leading to a massive uptick in urea off-take.”

Cost of sales increased to Rs5.08 billion, up 30% year-on-year from Rs3.92 billion. Finance cost fell to Rs551.74 million from Rs663.50 million.



Revenues under the other income category fell to Rs84.70 million from Rs194.84 million in the corresponding quarter of last year.

Cumulatively, in the first half (January-June 2017), the firm registered a profit of Rs4.29 billion (earnings per share Rs2.04), up 44% from Rs2.97 billion earned in the corresponding period of last year.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 25^th, 2017.

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