Business & Money | Monday 10 August, 2015 3:09 am |

The first quarter of 2015 marked the beginning of another exciting and challenging year for Saudia Dairy and Foodstuff Company (SADAFCO), said its CEO Wout Matthijs.
He made these remarks at a press conference, while presenting an overview of SADAFCO’s activities and financial results, along with the highlights of the company’s business plans.

Driven by ever-increasing consumer demand for its products and continued investments in state-of-the-art manufacturing infrastructure, SADAFCO yet again registered double-digit growth as growing consumer demand and new capabilities drive its stock to an all-time high.
SADAFCO produces dairy and foodstuff products under the brand name Saudia.

The CEO added: “The combination of a dynamic Saudi economy and our own internal efforts to optimize SADAFCO productivity has led to the company registering strong results this year.”
As per the financial results for the first quarter of 2015, SADAFCO generated a net profit of SR58.5 million, recording an increase of 72 percent when compared to the same period last year, which was SR 34.1 million.
This increase in net profit for the first quarter compared to the same period last year has been attributed to a sales increase of 12 percent as compared to the same period last year. 

Besides this, the gross profit margin improved from 29.6 percent to 34.5 percent year-on-year basis, with lower raw material costs being a key contributor.
The latest financial results also noted that the total gross profit for Q1 in 2015 amounted to SR179.7 million, an increase of 31percent as compared to the same period last year, which was SR137.2 million and the operating profit rose to SR62.2 million. This is an increase of 63 percent as compared to the same period last year, which was SR38.2 million. The earnings per share (EPS) for Q1 rose to SR1.80 from SR1.05 for the same period last year.
“The first quarter of 2015 marks the beginning of another exciting and challenging year for SADAFCO, one in which we aspire to improve our financial performance while maintaining focus on our long-term strategic goals,” said Matthijs.
This growth has propelled SADAFCO’s share price to trade at an all-time high of SR153 during July 2015, he said.
This milestone also marks the company’s 10th anniversary of being listed on Tadawul, he pointed. During annual general meeting (AGM) held recently, SADAFCO’s general assembly has ratified the proposal by the board of directors to distribute a cash dividend of SR3.50 per share, representing 35 percent of the nominal share value.

The meeting also approved the appointment of Ernst and Young as external auditors for the upcoming financial year, ending in March 2016.
Commenting on it, Matthijs said: “We continued our journey along a trans-formative path, making significant changes in the way we operate, while acquiring and developing new capabilities that are critical to realize our long-term vision.”
SADAFCO’s independent board members Suliman Saud Al-Jarrallah and Ahmed Mohamed Hamed Al Marzouki and Executive Board Member Mussad Abdullah Al-Nassar attended the press conference.