Corporate results: Fatima Fertilizer announces Rs6.43 billion profit

Increases 11% in the first nine months of the current calendar year.

KARACHI: Fatima Fertilizer – part of Arif Habib Corporation – has announced a net profit of Rs6.43 billion in the first nine months ending September 30, 2014, up 11% compared to Rs5.8 billion in the same period of the last calendar year.

Earnings per share (EPS) increased to Rs3.06 against an EPS of Rs2.76 in the previous year. Improvement in the company’s profitability was primarily seen due to higher fertiliser prices, volumetric growth in off-take and a decline in financial charges, Global Research reported on Tuesday.

Furthermore, despite the increase in fuel stock prices and maintenance expense, the firm was able to secure higher gross margins compared to last year.  On a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) basis, the company’s profitability jumped by 24% year on year (YoY) (up 72% quarter on quarter) to Rs3.03 billion during the third quarter (Jul-Sep) of calendar year 2014.

The reason for this increase was 10% YoY (up 14% QoQ) improvement in the company’s volumetric sales.

During the nine months of calendar year 2014, the company’s revenues advanced by 6% YoY to Rs25.86 billion despite the floods in lower Punjab and upper Sindh during September 2014 as the company was able to market more of its fertilisers between January to September 2014 compared to last year.

Total fertiliser sales stood at 823,000 during the period under review, increasing by 1% YoY against 819,000 during the same period last year.

On a QoQ basis, the company’s volumetric sales increased by 10% YoY (up 14% QoQ) to 315,000 tons, which translated into 20% YoY (up 24% QoQ) growth in revenues to Rs10.25 billion during the third quarter of calendar year 2014.

Despite the hike in Gas Infrastructure Development Cess on fuel stock coupled with an increase in maintenance expenses, the company’s gross margins expanded by 70 basis points (bps) to 59.6% between January to September 2014.

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

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