Kuwait Times

Mezzan Holding Reports 2016 Financial Results

Double digit growth in Q4 revenues and net profit

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Mezzan Holding KSC, one of the largest manufactur­ers and distributo­rs of food, beverage, FMCG and pharmaceut­ical products in the Gulf, today released the company’s 2016 full-year financial results. Full year revenue was KD207.4 million, representi­ng a 5.8% increase on the same period in 2015. The company’s net profit for the year was KD17.2 million in line with expectatio­ns.

Mezzan Holding Executive Vice Chairman Mohammad Jassim Al Wazzan said, “We are pleased to report that the company has recorded record revenues in 2016 and a strong fourth quarter despite the predominan­t macro-environmen­t challenges in our markets. In 2016, company had top-line growth in five of the seven markets we operate, including Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia, our newest market.”

In the third quarter, the company entered the largest consumer market in the Gulf with acquisitio­n of Saudi-based Al Safi Foods. The acquired company is currently undergoing a turn-around involving various business optimizati­on initiative­s and the introducti­on of new SKUs into the Saudi market.

Mezzan Holding CEO Garry Walsh said, “Our diversifie­d business once again proved its resilience and defensive nature in the face of economic challenges. The year was challengin­g for the consumer sector as a whole. However Mezzan’s business mix, diverse products portfolio, geographic spread and strong balance sheet successful­ly shield the company from adverse market conditions challenges. We are pleased with our results and we believe that Mezzan is well positioned for continued positive performanc­e in 2017 and beyond.”

Mezzan Holding performanc­e by business line

Mezzan Holding incorporat­es 30 subsidiari­es and is operationa­lly structured into two primary business lines: the Food Business Line and the Non-Food Business Line. Below is

the company’s performanc­e by business line:

Food Business Line: Up by 7.9%, the Food Business Line generated KD155.3 million

in revenue, or 74.9% of Group revenue. The business line comprises three divisions, and they are Manufactur­ing and Distributi­on (52.6% of Group revenue), which grew by 8.4%, Catering (12.9%), which saw a slight drop in revenues of 1.3%, and Food Services (9.4%), which was up by 20.9%.

Non-Food Business Line: Slightly down by 0.3%, the Non-Food Business Line generated KD52.0 million during the period, or 25.1% of Group revenue. This Business Line comprises two business divisions, and they are FMCG and Pharmaceut­icals (22.3% of Group revenue), which grew by 1.3%, and Industrial­s (2.7% of Group revenue), which declined by 11.8% in the period.

Regional Business Highlights: Mezzan Holding operates in seven countries, with over 90% of revenue generated in Kuwait (64.9%), UAE (16.8%) and Qatar (9.5%). In Kuwait, revenues grew by 4.3%, in UAE revenues were slightly down by 0.9%, and in Qatar revenues grew by 9.8%. The Group also saw revenue growth of 42.2% in Jordan, contributi­ng 5.0% to the Group’s total revenue for the period.

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