The board of Eterna Plc has presented its audited financials result for the year ended December 31, 2017, showing growth of 61.88 per cent. The result submitted at the Nigerian Stock Exchange showed that the company revenue for the period rose by 61.88 per cent to N173.03 billion from N106.887 billion reported in the preceding year. The cost of sales increased to N166.692 billion a from the previous year’s of N98.319 billion, representing a growth of 69.54 per cent with material cost accounting for N166.282 billiion from N97.801 billion in the comparative period.
The delivery cost, went to N410.746 million from N517.767 million reported in 2016; resulting in gross profit of N6.337 billion, a 26.04 per cent drop from prior year’s N8.568 billion. A breakdown of the revenue showed that oil trading , which is the bulk importation and sales directly to customers facilities or off shore distribution of white products, baseoils, bitumen, low pour fuel oil as well as lifting and sales of crude oil) fetched the bulk of N110.835 billion, as against the N48.274 billion in 2016; followed by the N56.214 billion from retail and industrial, compared to N54.026 billion in the preceding year; while lubricants and chemicals accounted for N5.979 billion, up from N4.586 billion in the corresponding period of 2016.
Trading was also the biggest contributor to the cost of sales at N110.003 billion ; followed by N52.214bn from retail and industrial; while N4.203 billion; leaving gross profit of N3.729 billion from retail and industrial; with N1.776 billion from lubricants and chemicals. Selling and distribution expenses rose to N73.431billion from N49.506 billion, helped by the N67.29 billion in marketing and sales commission, which rose from N48.449 billion; and sampling and analysis expenses that gulped N6.141 billion from N1.057 billion; just as general administrative expenses climbed from N2.094 billion to N3.1 billion, boosted by the N802.038m million compared to N259,000 .With no derivative loss for the period, as against N948.225 million reported in the year 2016, operating profit fell from N5.828 billion to N3.206 billion, representing a 44.98 per cent drop.
Finance income surged by 36.94 per cent to N142.457 million from N104.029 million while finance cost was contained by 84.83 per cent to N535.882 million , up from N3.531billion. The finance cost comprised N334.037 million, from the previous N288.426 million; even as interest and other financial charges, (the interest charges on various short-term loans, overdrafts and trade finances) dropped to N174.115 million from N3.224 billion Profit before tax for the period went up by 17.2 per cent to N2.812 billion from N2.4 billion in the corresponding full year of 2016, while a 12.09 per cent drop in tax from N922.613 million to N811.039 million left profit after tax at N2.001 billiin, which was 35.49 per cent better than the previous year of N1.477 billion Retail and industrial contributed N1.178 billion to the net profit for the year, from N1.079 billion in 2016; followed by N561.054 million from lubricants and chemicals, compared with N233.736 milliin, and N262.776 million from trading, as against N164.715 million in the preceding year.
Total comprehensive income for the year stood at N1.98 billion up from N1.469 billiion, translating to Earnings Per Share of N1.54, as against the previous N1.13 each. The directors of Eterna recommended a dividend of 40 kobo, up from 30 kobo in 2016, for approval by the shareholders at the annual general meeting coming up in June 19, 2018. Payment date is fixed for June 20, to those whose names appear on the register of members when it closes from May 24 to 28
