Unilever Declares N1.6bn Decline in Profit After Tax for Q2, 2020

Unilever Nigeria Plc on Monday reported -N1.633 billion profit after tax for the quarter ended June 30, 2020.

In the financial statements released through the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), the company said revenue declined from N23.422 billion in the same period of 2019 to N14 billion in the second quarter of 2020 despite the cost of sales reducing from N15.945 billion to N11.279 billion during the period under review.

Accordingly, gross profit declined from N7.477 billion reported in the corresponding quarter of 2019 to N2.729 billion in the second quarter of 2020. Selling and distribution expenses depreciated from increased from N1.048 billion in the second quarter of 2019 to N1.136 billion.

Profit before tax plunged from N2.670 billion filed in the corresponding quarter of last year to -N1.515 billion.

Earnings per share for profit attributable to equity holders declined from 35 kobo recorded in the second quarter of 2019 to -28 kobo in the second quarter of 2020.

Speaking on the results, the Chairman of Unilever Nigeria Plc, His Royal Majesty, Nnaemeka Achebe, “Although we are not declaring dividend for 2019, we are optimistic because our results show that we made progress in some other critical areas of our operations which speaks to the fact that we are on the right path to growing our business for profitability and better returns on investment for our shareholders. Therefore, the task before the board and management is to drive our strategic objectives that would not only keep the business afloat but also ensure it operates efficiently,” he said.