Cherat Cement earns Rs743m in Oct-Dec quarter

First six-month net profit jumps to Rs1.35 billion

KARACHI: Cherat Cement Company has posted a net profit of Rs743 million in the October-December quarter of FY18, up 20% compared with Rs621 million in the same period of previous fiscal year, according to a company notice sent to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Thursday.

The result was above market expectations, according to a Sherman Securities’ report.

Earnings per share (EPS) jumped to Rs4.21 in Oct-Dec FY18 compared with Rs3.51 in the corresponding period of previous year.



This took the first six-month (Jul-Dec) 2017 net profit to Rs1.35 billion (EPS Rs7.64), up 32% compared with Rs1.02 billion (EPS Rs5.80) in the same period of previous fiscal year.

Along with the result, the company announced an interim cash dividend of Rs1 per share.

The company booked tax credit of Rs0.1 million during the first half of fiscal year 2017-18 (1HFY18) against tax expense of Rs340 million in the same period of last year. Realisation of tax credit was due to a tax holiday available for the company’s new plant.



The company was a main beneficiary of its new capacity addition as its market share increased by 3.1 percentage points to 7% in 1HFY18. As a result, revenues increased by 86% year-on-year to Rs7.6 billion during 1HFY18 owing to increase in overall cement dispatches by 107%.

Gross margins of the company stood at 25% during 1HFY18 compared with 41% in the same period of last year. The decline can be attributed to 20% higher coal prices year-on-year and 10% lower retention price year-on-year.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 9^th, 2018.

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