Nigerian Breweries Shareholders Approve N33 Billion Dividend

Goddy Egene

Shareholders of Nigerian Breweries Plc on Friday approved the N33 billion dividend proposed by the Board of Directors for the year ended December 31, 2017.

The shareholders, who gave the approval at the 72nd annual general meeting(AGM) of the company in Lagos, also hailed the positive performance in spite of the very challenging operating environment.

According to them, the 2017 results and the dividend pay-out are strong signals of the resilience of the company in the face of the apparent challenges of the economy.

For instance, Alhaji Gbadebo Olatokunboh congratulated the company for good showing in 2017 and rewarding the shareholders with impressive dividend.

Another shareholder, Mr. Shotunde Shopeju expressed confidence that the company remained in good stead to deliver good returns to shareholders in the future and congratulated the company for remaining strong even in the midst of economic challenges.

Similarly, Mr. Theophilus Adegboye commended the Nigerian Breweries for improving the fortunes of shareholders.

In his response, Chairman of the company, Chief Kola Jamodu explained that the 100 per cent dividend pay-out was a reflection of its strong balance sheet and overall health.

He added that the N33 billion dividend pay-out was a considerable increase over the N28 billion paid the previous year.

Jamodu maintained that the operating environment in 2017 was very challenging especially from an input cost, foreign exchange and purchasing power perspectives.

The leading brewing firm recorded a revenue of N334.6 billion in 2017, up 6.6 per cent from N313.7 billion posted in 2016.

Other income jumped by 266 per cent to N2.2 billion from N600 million, while net finance cost fell by 21 per cent from N13.2 billion to N10.5 billion.

Profit before tax rose from N39.7 billion to N46.6 billion, just as profit after tax improved to N33 million, compared to N28.4 million in 2016.

Based on the performance, the directors have recommended a total dividend of N33 billion, that translate to N4.13 per share. The recommended dividend is inclusive of interim dividend of N8 billion, which is N1.00 per share earlier paid by the company in November 2017.

The company had said it remained confident that the it had a clear strategy to deliver good return on investment to shareholders going forward as part of its commitment to “winning with Nigeria.”