Agthia Group, one of the region’s leading food and beverages companies, today announced the group’s net revenue reached AED3.07 billion ($835.83 million) for 2021, a 49 percent growth compared to the same period last year, following the consolidation and integration of key acquisitions into the business.

 

The group’s net profit stood at AED216 million compared to AED34 million in the previous year, in which AED83 million of one-off costs were incurred as a result of a strategic review of the company’s balance sheet, the company said.

 

The substantial improvement to net income was underpinned by the addition of Al Foah, Al Faysal Bakery, Nabil Foods, and Atyab alongside key cost optimization initiatives and pricing that mitigated the impact of higher raw material costs and additional M&A related fees, it said.

 

Khalifa Sultan Al Suwaidi, Chairman of Agthia Group, said: “Agthia’s financial results for 2021 showcased a strong year for the business amid ongoing market volatility and challenging economic headwinds as the world recovers from Covid-19 and faces inflation. Despite these challenges, we continued our disciplined and methodical execution of the growth strategy we outlined for Agthia. Our results for 2021 are a testament to the soundness of our strategy and the quality of its execution. The milestones achieved reflect our dedication to the ongoing transformation efforts across all our primary verticals as we build a more efficient organisation that will enhance value creation and improve productivity.”

 

Al Suwaidi added: “In 2022, we look forward to delivering further growth and value for our shareholders as we accelerate the growth potential of our new businesses and add new value accretive platforms to our existing businesses.”

 

Alan Smith, Chief Executive Officer of Agthia Group, said: “In 2021 our primary focus was the consolidation of our Consumer Business Division (CBD), which almost doubled versus the previous year, as a result of our targeted approach towards strategic acquisitions. Our M&A activity throughout 2021 showcases our ongoing commitment to evolving the business into growth accretive consumer goods categories with the acquisition and consolidation of four new entities across the Protein and Snacking segments, contributing a healthy AED1.07 billion to sales. We will continue to explore strategic investment opportunities while working on fully realizing integration benefits from the strong businesses acquired over the past year. Our track record for cost optimization was sustained throughout the year, underpinned by complementary additions to our business, as we move towards our target of AED200 million productivity improvement by 2025.”

 

On the financial side, the CBD observed robust growth and contributed towards 70% of total group revenues, a 15% increase in contribution compared to 2020. Agri-business division revenues totalled AED931 million for the year, the company said.

 

The Protein & Frozen and Snacking segments contributed AED656 million and AED540 million respectively to the top-line, driven by the addition of the four new businesses to Agthia’s growing portfolio.

 

Water and Beverage, and Other Food items, recorded revenues of AED941 million. The bottled water segment in the UAE – which includes Al Ain Water, Al Bayan, Voss, and Alpin – continued to demonstrate resilience and preserved market leadership for the year, standing respectively at 26% for volume and 23% in value shares.

 

Revenue in the Agri-business division was flat versus 2020, which included a one-time World Food Program order in Q1 2020. On profitability, global inflation in grain prices and freight costs continued to put pressure on margins which is being addressed through operational efficiencies and pricing adjustments.

 

The group’s total assets as of 31st December 2021 reached AED6.4 billion following the consolidation of new assets into the business, up from AED3.1 billion as recorded for the previous year. Total shareholders’ equity stood at AED2.8 billion for the period, increasing from AED1.9 billion in 2020.

 

In line with our semi-annual policy, Agthia’s Board of Directors has recommended an 8.25% cash dividend for the second half of 2021, equivalent to AED0.0825 per share and, once approved by shareholders, total dividends distributed for the year will amount to AED 130.6 million, an increase from AED 118.8 million in 2020. - TradeArabia News Service