Fidson Healthcare Plc has assured that the company would build on its impressive historic growth and provide investors with good returns in the years ahead.
The assurance was given by the board and management of company, at the presentation of its Facts-Behind-the-Figure, at the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).
The company is currently seeking N3 billion via an offer by way of rights issues. It is offering 750 million shares at N4.00 per share.
According to the offer document, about 60 per cent of the issue proceeds would be applied towards taking out expensive short-term debts, thereby reducing finance cost by about 50 per cent on an annualised basis going forward.
Speaking during the presentation in Lagos, the head of Finance and Accounts of Fidson Healthcare, Imokha Ayebae, puts the company’s projected earnings from sales for the 2019 financial year at N20.083 billion while profit before tax is targeted at N3.444 billion; rising by 2020 to N23.095 billion and N3.926 billion respectively. By 2023, the management believed revenue will hit N25.125 billion and profit, N5.971 billion.
Besides the coming on stream of its new factory and increased capacity utilization, Ayebae said they would deploy cost cutting measures to help achieve the target, such as lowering finance cost with the fresh capital, among others and increase in product prices.
He further stated that there were plans to reduce energy cost from the current 40 per cent of total by moving from diesel to gas fired power generators, eliminating middlemen and introducing new products.
He blamed the drop in revenue and profit in 2018, to a combination of increased costs due to scarcity and cost of raw materials, besides the naira devaluation and Nigeria’s port congestion, all of which has impacted operating costs that could not be passed to consumers, at a time about 95 per cent of raw materials in the country were imported.
On the payment of dividend, despite the drop in 2018 profit, he noted that the directors decided to maintain its records of dividend payment which it started since becoming a listed company, saying that Fidson has paid out N1.8 billion as dividend to shareholders.
