MTN leads as 27 most capitalised companies make N2.33trn in Q1, 2022

MTN Nigeria Plc and 27 other most capitalized companies on the Nigerian Stock market, operating in the manufacturing, telecommunication, oil and gas, and agricultural sectors earned a whopping sum of N2.33 trillion as revenue in the first quarter of 2022, outpacing their earnings of N1.75bn in the corresponding period of 2021 by 33.2 per cent.

A look at the companies’ quarterly reports shows that telco giant, MTN Nigeria recorded the highest revenue of N470.98 billion, largely driven by its voice call revenue, while leading cement manufacturer, Dangote Cement followed with a N413.18 billion top-line revenue.

The revenue growth recorded by the companies is remarkable, considering economic disruptions in the global economy occasioned by the ripple effect on energy, power, food cost, amongst others, caused by the Russia-Ukraine face-off and the aftermath of the covid-19 pandemic.

Despite the rise in the cost of production, Nigerian businesses in the manufacturing sector have been able to shift this cost to their customers without affecting their margins despite a drop in sales volume.

For example, BUA Cement recorded a 52.2 per cent increase in production cost, triggered by 66.1 percent and 63.7 per cent increases in the cost of raw materials and energy in the first quarter of 2022.

Also, Nigerian Breweries was able to grow its revenue by 30.4 per cent Year-on-Year, while its cost of sales only increased by 14.1 per cent, resulting in a 57.4 per cent increase in gross profit, while its gross profit margin moved from 37.5 per cent recorded in the first quarter of 2021 to 45.3 per cent in the review period.