East African Portland Cement Company (EAPCC) has reversed a half-year loss to post a Sh35 million half profit for six months to December on increased sales as the firm grabbed market share from rival firms.
It posted a loss of Sh720.7 million in the six months to December 2023, continuing a turnaround that saw it post a full-year profit of Sh1 billion and declare its first dividend in 13 years.
The cement manufacturer says its revenues nearly doubled to Sh3.2 billion from Sh1.8 billion a year prior.
Its unit sales grew 56 percent in a period when cement consumption in the country dropped two percent to 4.6 million tonnes.
This signals that EAPCC gained market share from rivals in a market dominated by Mombasa Cement and Bamburi Cement—which was recently bought by Tanzania’s Amsons Group.
It linked the sales jump to improved production efficiency and optimal price adjustments for its products.
“Revenue grew by 79 percent while sales volume grew by 56 percent compared to the same period last year. This is accrued from enhanced plant reliability and strategic pricing from optimal route-to-market,” the company said in a trading update on Thursday.
The profit swing for the six months to December marks an extension of bullish performance for the firm.
The Sh1 billion profit for the year ending June last year was mostly driven by gains made from EAPCC's fresh valuation of assets, which translated to a gain of Sh3 billion compared to Sh644.5 million a year earlier.
Its sales last year grew 10.3 percent to Sh3.2 billion, indicating its revenues for the six months to December match those of the full year to June.
The cement maker declared a dividend of Sh1 per share after turning around a loss of Sh1.3 billion in 2023.
The payout sparked a rally in the firm’s shares, which gained 377 percent to Sh33.50 a piece over the past six months. This made it the top-performing share at the Nairobi bourse over the period.
The firm raised its profit outlook for the full year.
“The company undertook a comprehensive plant technical audit and developed an investment plan that targets full utilization of the installed capacity within the second half of the financial year,” EAPCC said.
