Dr Okechukwu Mbonu, Chairman of Cutix Cables Plc., has called on privately owned firms and individuals in the South-East to take advantage of the opportunities available in the financial market.
Mbonu made the call during the Annual General Meeting (AGM) and 2018 audited financial report of the company in Nnewi, Anambra, on Sunday.
He said getting listed in the stock market was good for survival and longevity of companies while investing could yield huge financial benefits for the individual.
The chairman said not much of the companies in the South-East were listed and that was also responsible for the low individual investors in shares.
“The question is, how many privately owned companies in the South-East are listed on the Stock Exchange; not many of them in this part of the country.
“People must begin to understand the benefits and value they can derive from investing in the financial market, that is when you will see companies going to money market and individual’s invest in stocks.
“The South-West is ahead in terms of investment and share ownership because of number of listed companies there and they know the value, but it is a gradual process.
“For the records in the past four-five years, Cutix PLC shares have been steady at N1.50 kobo and now it went up to N4.70 kobo, that is N3 per share; so if you own shares of about N1 million in 2014 , you have earned N3 million net and that is exclusive of dividend.
“We urge you, the media to help us educate people from this part of the country on the immense benefits of not only investing in stock market but also taking your company to the financial market,” he said.
The financial report of the company showed that it earned N661.6m as Profit Before Tax (PBT) for its 2018 financial year which ended on April. 30.
This represented an increase of 79 per cent over N370.1 million recorded in 2017, while revenue increased by 38 per cent to N5.1 billion from N3.7 billion recorded in the previous year.
The company’s Profit after Tax indicated an increase of 71 per cent at N440. 3 million as against N257.5 realised in 2017.
The total equity of the company increased from N1.01 billion in 2017 to N1.3 billion in 2018, while paid-up share capital and number of shares in issue remained unchanged at N440.3 million and N880.7 million, respectively.
The chairman said the financial year under review was a trying one due to the recession in the first half of the year and devalued strength of the Naira in the foreign exchange market.
He said the company was a giving shares dividend of one-for-one which was one of the best given out by any quoted company in Nigeria.
He said the resilience of the company was because of its knowledge of the Nigerian environment and its ability to apply all necessary survival strategies to remain afloat.
“The Naira went into a kind of a tailspin so it was quite difficult for people in the manufacturing sector.
“What we had to do was to re-calibrate all our parameters for manufacturing, and because we have been in the system for a long time and having experienced situation like this in the past.
“The major resolutions were the one-for-one bonus share dividend we gave and another 20 kobo on each ordinary share, that is one of the best you can get now.
“We also approved the appointment of new directors and more importantly all the financial variables in asset, share capital economic value added, dividends are well ahead of other quoted companies,” he said.
Mr Oladimeji Adeleke, a shareholder of the company, said he was excited about the impressive record of the company and thanked the management for declaring the ‘sumptuous’ dividend.
Adeleke urged the company to be more aggressive in marketing and advertising as well as spend more on research and development in order to cut back on volume of foreign raw materials inputs.(NAN)