Why NMG is Hunting for Companies to Buy

Nation Media Group (NMG) is keen on mergers and acquisitions as the market-leading media company pushes to diversify its revenues.

CEO Stephen Gitagama while addressing the company’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) on June 30 disclosed that product innovation and organizational transformation was key to the firm’s strategy. To gain a foothold in various sectors, it is looking at opportunities for mergers and acquisitions.

“We are identifying mergers and acquisition opportunities for products that will help the Group drive value in key social impact areas such as agriculture, youth, environment, educatíon, technology among others,” Gitagama told the AGM.

The company has been increasingly focused on digital subscriptions to shore up reader revenue as it looks to reduce reliance on print. Print sales and advertising still account for the bulk of the NMG’s earnings.

The group recorded a tenfold increase in net profit for the year ended December 2021 to hit Ksh493.1 million on the back of recovery in print and broadcasting revenues following the impact of Covid-19 in 2020. Total revenues rose 12 percent year on year to Ksh7.6 billion.

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Print accounted for 72% of the Group’s revenues for the year ended December 2021. Digital’s contribution to NMG’s bottomline has, however, been growing. Digital revenues increased by 20 percent to account for 6 percent of the Group’s turnover in 2021.

The paywall on its flagship platform Nation.Africa was temporarily pulled down this year having racked up over 50,000 paying subscribers as of April 2021. According to Nation, the decision was made with the upcoming general elections in mind. It seeks to reach as wide an audience as possible with its news content.

The paywall is set to make a comeback after the August polls.

The company also disclosed that it had registered the Nation Media Foundation as it looks to undertake initiatives and partnerships that tie into the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Notably, NMG will also pay shareholders a final dividend of Ksh1.5 per share on issued and paid-up share capital as at 31st December 2021 following the improved performance.

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