EABL half year profit jumps 33% to Sh6.6 billion

East Africa Breweries Limited (EABL) has reported a 33% increase in net profit for the half year ended December 2018 to post Ksh 6.6 billion attributable to strong performance by its subsidiaries across the region.

The brewer’s net sales also adjusted up 13% during the half year compared to a similar period last year while the company’s operating margin surged up 2.3%.

Tanzania which posted a 26% increase in net sales dwarfed Kenya and Uganda which both recorded 12% in net sales.

Spirits was the biggest money maker for the alcohol drinks distributor after posting 16% increase in net sales while beer recorded a 12% increase.

The increase in beer sales was largely driven by the strong performance by standard brew Senator KEG whose sales increased 35% in Kenya.

Speaking during the release of the results on Thursday, EABL CEO Andy Cowan noted that the growth in spirits sales was driven by mainstream spirits.

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“We have delivered a solid set of results and we are pleased with this half-year performance. We have made progress against our performance ambition, delivering broad-based growth across regions and categories. There is still a lot more to do across all our markets, but this half-year performance proves that we can get there if we continue to focus on strategic execution across our business.” said Mr Cowan.

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The company’s Board of Directors has recommended an interim dividend of Kshs2.50 per share for the half-year period which represents a 25% increase, compared to the same period last year.