Champion Breweries Plc recorded a strong performance for the nine months ended September 30, 2025, posting a pre-tax profit of N3.14 billion, compared to the N178.2 million in the same period in 2024.
This represents an over 1,661% increase year-on-year.
The financial result filed with the Nigerian Exchange on Friday, October 31, 2025, revealed that in the third quarter (Q3), however, the company slipped into a pre-tax loss of N318.3 million, down from a N511.2 million profit in Q3 2024, driven by high finance costs.
The Q3 loss contrasts sharply with the solid year-to-date growth. Management did note that Q4 is typically its peak season, hinting at possible recovery.
However, the company recorded strong growth both in Q3 and 9M 2025.
- Q3 revenue grew by 22% YoY to N5.5 billion, pushing the nine-month revenue to N21.42 billion up 53% YoY.
Key Highlights (9M 2025 vs. 9M 2024)
- Revenue: N21.43 billion (+52.8% YoY from N14.02 billion)
- Cost of sales: N11.137 billion (+36.96% YoY from N8.131 billion)
- Gross Profit: N10.3 billion (+74.8% YoY from N5.89 billion)
- Operating Profit: N4.29 billion (+275% YoY from N1.14 billion)
- Post-tax Profit: N2.046 billion (up from N21.496 million)
- Earnings Per Share (EPS): 22.86 kobo up from 0.24 kobo
- Cash Balance: N4.40 billion (up slightly from N4.31 billion in Dec 2024)
- Total Assets: N36.83 billion (up from N21.35 billion in Dec 2024)
- Shareholders’ Funds: N13.565 billion (+12.52% from N12.056 billion in Dec 2024)
The drivers
Champion Breweries’ revenue growth was driven by strong performance across its core beer and malt beverage products.
- The over N7.4 billion increase in revenue suggests pricing strategy, increased product demand and aggressive sales efforts, as suggested by a year-on-year rise in advertising and sales expenses (up 233% to N1.04 billion).
- The company also announced a strategic acquisition of the Bullet brand, which could contribute to future growth pending regulatory approval.
On the cost side, despite a 36.96% YoY increase in the cost of sales to N11.14 billion, revenue grew at a much faster pace, expanding gross profit by 74.8% to N10.3 billion.
- This suggests effective cost management, better input cost control, or a favorable shift in product mix toward higher-margin products.
Sharp rise in operating profit
Operating profit surged to N4.29 billion from N1.14 billion, reflecting significant operational leverage. The improvement was largely driven by lower operating expenses relative to gross profit.
- Operating expenses accounted for 54% of gross profit in 9M 2025, a marked improvement from 82% in 9M 2024.
This efficiency gain was a key driver of the profit surge, indicating tighter cost control, reduced overhead pressure, and stronger leverage from higher sales volumes.
However, there remains room for improvement, as operating expenses in absolute terms still increased to N17.18 billion, up from N12.94 billion in the corresponding period of 2024.
Balance sheet
On the balance sheet, total assets jumped 73% to N36.83 billion, fueled by capital expenditure of N4.7 billion and a massive increase in prepayments (N10 billion vs N2 million in Dec 2024).
- Borrowings now stand at N13.48 billion from a zero position as of December 2024
Despite this, cash flows from operations remained strong at N5.85 billion for the nine months, up from N1.59 billion in 2024.
Market reaction
Champion Breweries’ share price closed at N15.00 on Friday, October 31, 2025, the same day the results were released.
The stock has delivered a staggering 294% return year-to-date, ranking it seventh on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX).
