- NAHCO recorded a nine-month profit of N17.9 billion, with net earnings rising by 47%, reflecting strong operational growth and profitability.
- The company secured major contracts and regulatory approvals, including handling radioactive shipments and partnerships with Afrijet, Air Sierra Leone, Emirates, Turkish Airlines, and Virgin Atlantic.
- NAHCO continues to invest in digitization, equipment re-fleeting, and ESG initiatives, positioning itself as a diversified logistics leader in West Africa.
Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO) Plc has further strengthened its impressive earnings outlook with the third quarter results showing double-digit growth across key performance indicators within the nine-month period.
The nine-month results of NAHCO for the period ended September 30, 2025 released at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) showed strong growths across sales and profitability, with a 47 per cent increase in net earnings underlining the increased capacity of the leading aviation handling and logistics group to sustain improved returns to shareholders.
The report showed that total revenue rose by 40.7 per cent from N33.95 billion in the third quarter 2024 to N47.76 billion in third quarter 2025, driven by renewed and new business contracts and expanding business activities across the subsidiaries.
Gross profit rose by 37.1 per cent to N28.43 billion in third quarter 2025 as against N20.74 billion in third quarter 2024, showing top-line cost efficiency despite domestic and global inflationary pressures.
Operating profit jumped by 40.8 per cent from N12.88 billion to N18.14 billion, underlining the fact that the performance of the company was driven by business operations rather than financial or structural management. Profit before tax leapt by 46 per cent to N17.94 billion in third quarter 2025 compared with N12.29 billion in third quarter 2024.
After taxes, net profit stood at N13.46 billion, representing a remarkable increase of 46.6 per cent on N9.18 billion recorded in comparable period of 2024. With this, earnings per share increased simultaneously from N4.71 to N6.91, providing significant headroom for the group to sustain higher dividend payouts, even by the third quarter.
The balance sheet of the group also remained strong, with total assets rising from N46.95 billion in December 2024 to N48.64 billion by September 2025. Shareholders’ funds also increased from N20.04 billion in December 2024 to N21.92 billion in September 2025.
Underlying ratios indicated that the group’s performance was driven by operational excellence, with management focused on efficient cost management and a strong sales drive, mitigating macroeconomic headwinds.
While gross profit margin moderated from 61.09 per cent to 59.53 per cent due to elevated costs arising from inflationary pressure, operating profit margin improved from 37.94 per cent to 37.98 per cent. Pre-tax profit margin rose to 37.56 per cent as against 36.20 per cent. Return on total assets increased from 26.18 per cent to 36.88 per cent while return on equity grew from 45.81 per cent to 61.41 per cent.
The third quarter 2025 report places NAHCO, which had increased dividend payout by 134 per cent for the 2024 business year, in stronger stead to sustain its upwardly investor-friendly dividend policy. It should be recalled that NAHCO had distributed N11.58 billion as cash dividends for the 2024 business year, representing a dividend per share of N5.94, compared with N4.95 billion paid for the 2023 business year.
Chairman, Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO) Plc, Dr Seinde Fadeni, said the third quarter 2025 performance reflected continuing industry leadership as the most preferred aviation logistics group and the ongoing diversification of the group.
He said the board and management remain committed to a sustainable business model that widens activities and deepens profitability, placing the group in position for better returns to all stakeholders.
According to him, the group is completely focused on implementing its five-year strategic blueprint, which would drive the next phase of phenomenal growth.
He assured all stakeholders that NAHCO would continue to prioritise investments in equipment, technologies and know-how to retain its leadership position not only in Nigeria but in the entire West African region.
Group Managing Director, Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO) Plc, Mr Olumuyiwa Olumekun, said NAHCO has positioned itself at the growth end of Nigeria’s economy with its expansive investments in export processing and warehouses across the country.
He noted that the massive NAHCO Export Packaging and Processing Centre in Lagos was a first of its kind in Nigeria and a deliberate strategy for sustainable benefits to all stakeholders.
According to him, across its operations, NAHCO is adding values to the Nigerian economy and all stakeholders, while ensuring competitive returns to shareholders.
He said the group remains focused on four areas of sustained growth, equipment re-fleeting, digitization and environmental, social governance (ESG) to ensure better performance in the period ahead.
He explained that the diversified nature of the group and the onboarding of new business ventures would ensure that the group sustain its growth trajectory.
“Since transiting from being the foremost ground handling service provider in the entire sub-region to being a diversified, total logistics group, we have been driven by the earnest desire to provide unmatched level of excellent service delivery to our clients. This commitment has become more urgent as we seek to satisfy new demands for excellence and to improve shareholder value,” Olumekun said.
He commended shareholders, customers and staff of the company for their support and commitment, which have continued to enable the group to perform better every year.
“We will continue to work together to ensure even better performance for the company,” Olumekun said.
NAHCO has been implementing a massive reinvestment programme across staff capacity, technologies and equipment. It had implemented a major staff welfare enhancement package, including 50 per cent increase in salary, while sustaining the existing annual profit-sharing initiative and semi-annual performance bonus scheme. The group is also implementing Oracle ERP and HCM systems, a pivotal initiative designed to enhance NAHCO’s efficiency and digital transformation. In the last one year, the company has been re-fleeting its equipment, with a December 2025 target to replace all ageing equipment.
In February 2025, NAHCO, in a first-of-its-kind in the aviation industry, received the Federal Government’s approval to handle shipments with radioactive contents in its facilities at the airports. The approval, jointly conveyed by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and the Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NNRA), directed “all importers and exporters of radioactive material” to “contact NAHCO for import and export of radioactive material”.
Earlier, NAHCO had been selected by regional operators, Afrijet and Air Sierra Leone, to handle their ground operations in Nigeria. The contracts between the parties have seen NAHCO providing services for Afrijet’s flights into Port Harcourt and Lagos, and Air Sierra Leone’s flights to Lagos. The contract with Afrijet was for a three-year period ending 2027, while Air Sierra Leone’s contract was for five years ending in 2029.
NAHCO had also secured extension of ground handling contracts with three leading international carriers, Emirates, Turkish and Virgin Atlantic. Emirates, which resumed scheduled flight operations to Nigeria in October 2024, had previously appointed NAHCO to provide it with complete ground handling services. This arrangement would now be in place for the next five years.
British carrier, Virgin, has always pitched its tent with NAHCO because of its excellent service delivery, while the company has always been the ground handlers of choice for Turkish Airlines, with long-standing contracts’ approvals and renewals.
Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the industry regulator, in a celebrated recognition, honoured NAHCO with “Industry Champions Award”, underlining the leadership of the group in the aviation services sector. NAHCO was also recently presented with the “Aviation Ground Handling Company of the Year Award” by Transport Day Media.
