Crown Cement’s profit surges in Q2

Crown Cement PLC reported a 371 per cent surge in profit in the second quarter of the ongoing financial year on the back of higher sales.     

The cement manufacturer raked in Tk 14.70 crore in profit in the October-December quarter of 2022-23, up from Tk 3.12 crore reported in the identical quarter of 2021-22, according to the un-audited financial statements.

Thus, Crown Cement posted earnings per share of Tk 0.99 for October-December against Tk 0.21 in the same quarter of FY22.

The EPS climbed in the second quarter thanks to an increase in revenue, said the cement maker in a filing on the Dhaka Stock Exchange.

The profit, however, fell to Tk 9.36 crore in the first half of the ongoing financial year from Tk 11.14 crore in the same half a year earlier.

The EPS was Tk 0.63 in July-December of FY23, down from Tk 0.75 in the first half of FY22.

The profit declined in July-December owing to an unprecedented foreign exchange loss, the filing said.

The taka has lost its value by about 25 per cent against the American greenback in the past one year and nearly 14 per cent in July-December, data from the central bank showed.

With the second-quarter profit, Crown Cement returned to profit.

The company incurred a loss of Tk 5.35 crore in the July-September quarter of FY23.

Shares of Crown Cement closed at Tk 74.40 on the DSE on Thursday.