KARACHI: Engro Fertilizers announced net consolidated earnings of Rs2.8 billion in the quarter ended September 2017, down 4.4% compared to Rs2.93 billion in the same period of previous year, according to a company notice sent to the Pakistan Stock Exchange.
Earnings per share stood at Rs2.11 in Jul-Sep 2017 compared to Rs2.15 in the corresponding quarter of preceding year.
In the first nine months of 2017, the company made a net profit of Rs6.92 billion as opposed to Rs5.74 billion in the same period of previous year.
Along with the quarterly results, the company declared an interim cash dividend of Rs3 per share, taking nine-month payout to Rs5.5 compared to Rs4.5 per share in the same period of last year.
The KSE 100-share Index closed at 41,291, down 192 points or 0.46% on Tuesday. Engro Fertilizers’ stock stood at Rs65.36, up 2.73%.
Sales grew 14% at Rs21.1 billion compared to Rs18.63 billion last year, driven by 90% higher sales of di-ammonium phosphate (DAP), estimated at 215,000 tons according to provisional September data.
Domestic urea sales were estimated to have contracted 7% year-on-year to 462,000 tons while exports were around 100,000 tons in the Jul-Sep quarter.
Gross profit was 25% higher year-on-year as margins improved three percentage points to 29% because of replacement of Rs300-per-bag cash subsidy on DAP (previously recorded in other income) with a fixed Rs100-per-bag sales tax recorded in the sales head.
Other income dropped 57% following reduction in urea cash subsidy and replacement of DAP subsidy, along with lower urea sales.
Finance cost fell 13% to Rs694 million due to deleveraging and lower interest rates.
Key risks for the company included a decline in international urea prices, slower-than-expected urea sales and weaker-than-expected local urea prices, the report added.
Source Express Tribune