Economy
Afriland Properties’ FY19 Profit Rises 9%, Proposes 10 Kobo Dividend
By Adedapo Adesanya
Top properties development management and investment company, Afriland Properties Plc, recorded a 9 percent increase in its profit after tax (PAT) for the year ended 2019.
In its annual reports for the year under review, the company declared a profit after tax of N744.1 million, higher than N682.4 million that was achieved by the company in 2018, indicating a difference of N61.7 million.
This occurred as the company recorded an operating profit of N1.5 billion during the year compared to N1.3 billion actualised in the preceding year, marking a rise of 11.2 percent year-on-year.
According to the company’s Chairman, Mr Emmanuel Nnorom, despite the harsh economic environment in Nigeria, the company recorded strong operating performances as evident in its revenue and profit.
He said, “In view of the performance, the board of directors is proposing the sum of N137,390,000 as dividend payment for the year ended December 31, 2019, this translates to 10 kobo per ordinary share.”
As at December 31, the firm’s total profit before tax (PBT) was pegged at N1.3 billion, about 45 percent higher than N915 million on record in the previous year.
The company’s total tax paid for the full year amounted to N595.2 million. This was 155 percent or N233.0 million more than the N362.2 million paid in the 2018 financial year by the firm previously known as UBA Properties.
The company also saw higher earnings per share as it recorded 54 kobo on its unit shares compared to 50 kobo published in 2018.
In the period under consideration, the total assets of Afriland declined by 0.2 percent to N24.86 billion from N24.91 billion achieved in the prior year, while there was a rise in the total equity to N8.04 billion from N7.6 billion.
In a public notice to the NASD Securities Exchange where the company trades its securities, the firm, which recently unveiled a new property in Lagos that was launched by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, said the closure of register of its members would be from Monday, March 9 to Friday, March 13. It further said the 10 kobo dividend will be paid to those who are qualified as at close of business on March 6 after shareholders’ approval at the company’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) scheduled to hold on Monday, March 23, at Congress Hall, Transcorp Hilton Hotel, FCT Abuja by 2:00 p.m.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is seeking a reduction in import duty exemptions, which rose to N34 trillion, limiting its ability to increase its revenue generation threshold.
The Comptroller-General of the Customs Service, Mr Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed that the value of import duty exemption certificate approvals increased to that level in 2025, describing the policy as one of the major factors restricting its revenue generation.
At an investigative session of the Senate Committee on Finance with revenue-generating agencies in Abuja on Monday, Mr Adeniyi explained that government fiscal policies have continued to impact the revenue-generating capacity of the Customs Service, both positively and negatively.
“The NCS would have generated significantly higher revenue over the years if not for government-approved import duty waivers and other external factors affecting collections,” he said.
He added that the Import Duty Exemption Certificate scheme, introduced in March 2020, accounted for about N34 trillion in approvals in 2025, with nearly 60 per cent covering duty-free importation of military hardware due to Nigeria’s prevailing security challenges.
Other government-backed duty waivers, he noted, covered the importation of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), electric and hybrid vehicles, healthcare equipment and medical supplies, industrial machinery and manufacturing inputs, as well as food import intervention programmes.
While acknowledging the impact of the waivers on Customs revenue, Mr Adeniyi argued that fiscal policy should not be assessed solely on the basis of revenue generation but also on its broader economic and social objectives.
He, however, urged the federal government to establish stronger monitoring mechanisms to ensure beneficiaries of duty waivers deliver the intended economic outcomes, including lower consumer prices, increased local production and improved healthcare access.
The committee also expressed displeasure over the absence of several heads of government agencies invited to the hearing, including the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Industrial Training Fund (ITF), and the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Jabi.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Mr Sani Musa, warned that the affected chief executives must appear at the committee’s next sitting or face severe sanctions under the Senate’s rules.
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By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose by 0.40 per cent on Monday, July 13, buoyed by buying interest in 11 Plc, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc and UBN Property Plc, which offset the profit-taking in Food Concepts Plc, the parent company of Chicken Republic.
11 Plc gained N20.69 to end at N227.64 per share compared with last Friday’s price of N206.95 per share, CSCS Plc grew by N1.83 to N91.48 per unit from N89.65 per unit, and UBN Property Plc added 1 Kobo to sell at N1.81 per share versus N1.80 per share.
On the flip side, Food Concepts Plc depreciated by 24 Kobo to close at N2.45 per unit, in contrast to the preceding session’s N2.69 per unit.
As a result, the market capitalisation increased by N9.2 billion to N2.587 trillion from N2.578 trillion, and the NASD Security Index (NSI) improved by 15.33 points to 4,311.67 points from 4,296.34 points.
Yesterday, the volume of securities traded by investors surged by 615.9 per cent to 9.1 million units from the previous 1.3 million units, and the value of securities rose by 997.1 per cent to N320.4 million from the preceding session’s N29.2 million, while the number of deals decreased by 12.5 per cent to 28 deals from last Friday’s 32 deals.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units worth N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 73.9 million units exchanged for N5.2 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million.
