Corporate results: Fauji Cement’s earnings up 3%

Announces profit of Rs602m during first quarter of fiscal year.

KARACHI: Fauji Cement on Tuesday announced a net profit of Rs602 million during the first quarter (Jul-Sep) of fiscal year 2015, up just 3% year-on-year (YoY) compared to Rs582 million during the same period of the previous year.

Earnings per share (EPS) of the company increased to Rs0.45 from an EPS of Rs0.44 during the period under review. Earnings surged by 50% quarter on quarter because of an absence of preferred dividend, which was recorded at Rs273 million during the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2014 and a lower taxation rate of 32% (versus the 54% for fourth quarter of fiscal year 2014).

The earnings of the company were slightly lower than estimations of Rs0.48 per share because of a higher than anticipated exchange loss incurred during the period, Global Research reported on Tuesday.  The company’s revenues increased by 8% YoY to Rs4.17 billion during the first quarter of fiscal year 2015 due to a 4% YoY increase in cement prices to Rs516 per a 50-kg bag and a 3% year on year increase in cement dispatches to 0.59 million tons.

Sequentially, revenues slid by 16% quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) because of a 14% quarter on quarter decline in cement off-take and a comparatively lower proportion of local dispatches.

The gross margins of the company declined by 1% YoY to 32% during the first quarter of fiscal year 2015 due to inflationary pressures. Sequentially, margins declined by 4% QoQ because of lower volumetric sales and a lower proportion of local dispatches.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 29^th, 2014.

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