Olam Group, a leading agribusiness company, announced an increase in net profit for the second half of the year, attributed to lower exceptional losses. Despite this positive development, the company experienced a decline in revenue due to decreased prices of multiple products.
Financial Highlights
- Net profit for the six-month period ending December grew by 15.5% to S$230.76 million.
- Revenue, however, dropped by 11% to S$23.59 billion.
Strategic Initiatives
Olam Group revealed plans to initiate a share buyback program encompassing up to 5.0% of total outstanding shares. The company also intends to seek approval for this initiative during the upcoming annual general meeting scheduled for April.
Future Outlook
While acknowledging the escalating global macro risks and market uncertainties, Olam expressed its commitment towards advancing the listing of its entities Ofi and Olam Agri. However, the possibility of Olam Agri’s IPO within the first half of the year seems unlikely due to ongoing regulatory developments in Saudi Arabia.
Dividend Distribution
The board recommended a final dividend of 4.0 Singapore cents per share, resulting in a full-year dividend of 7.0 Singapore cents per share. Notably, this marks a reduction from the 8.5 cents per share distributed in the previous year.