CAP Plc recently financial statements for the year ended December 2017. While revenue increased slightly, the bottom line declined. Revenue increased by 4% from N6.8 billion in 2016 to N7.1 billion in 2017. Profit before tax however dropped by 5% from N2.2 billion in 2016 to N2.1 billion in 2017. Profit after tax also fell by 7% from N1.6 billion in 2016 to N1.4 billion in 2017.
Management costs jump
Despite the flat results, the company opted to increase salaries and wages. This rose from N507 million in 2016 to N621 million in 2017. Senior management took a larger percentage of staff costs as they accounted for 69% or N485 million of staff costs up from 65% or N382 million in 2016.
In terms of value added, the percentage applied to paying employees increased from 19% in 2016 to 23% in 2017. The percentage accrued to shareholders as dividends, however, dropped by 4% from 54% in 2016 to 50% in 2017.
Lower dividends
Shareholders may have less cause to smile if nothing improves in the current year as the company has opted to cut its dividend payments in line with lower earnings per share. CAP Plc has declared a final dividend of N2.03 kobo per share for the 2017 financial year, from earnings per share of N2.14. This is the lowest dividend the company has paid in the last 5 years.
Chemical and Allied Products Plc (CAP Plc), a subsidiary of UAC of Nigeria Plc, is the technological licensee of AkzoNobel, the world’s largest paint producer. UACN first bought a 35.7% stake in 1992 when parent company, ICI, sold its minority stake.Currently, UAC of Nigeria Plc holds about 50.09% of the company’s equity.
CAP Plc closed at N38.75 on Friday’s trading session, up 13.97% year to date.