By Adebisi Ademola
United Capital Plc has announced N2.01 billion profit in its unaudited financial statement for half year (H1) ended June 30, 2018, Up from N1.99 billion reported in half-year 2017.
The Company’s in its results to The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on Thursday said, Profit before tax also rose marginally by 0.7 percent to N2.39 billion, compared to N2.38 billion in H1 2017.
The company sustained growth in earnings and profitability despite a challenging macroeconomic environment.
The leading pan-African Investment banking group said, gross earnings gain 0.13 per cent to N3.88 billion H1 2018, compared to N3.87 billion in H1 2017.
Meanwhile, total assets dropped by 0.95 per cent to N135.3 billion as at June 30, 2018 compared to N136.6 billion in 2017 while funds under management dropped to N69.8 billion, compared to N70.5 billion in 2017.
The company’s shareholders’ funds thus rose by 8.9 per cent to N18.3 billion as at June 30, 2018, compared to N16.8 billion in 2017.
Commenting on the results, the group CEO, Peter Ashade said, “United Capital continues to pursue a clear and consistent strategy, which will always deliver a strong performance for shareholders, and we remain positive about our future opportunities within the Nigerian and African market, notwithstanding the challenging macro-economic environment.”
In spite of higher oil prices, GDP growth came in slower than expected in first quarter of 2018 as activities in the services sector of the Nigerian economy continue to constrain overall growth.
Also, events in the global space reversed the pace of foreign portfolio inflow into the local market amid rising interest rates in the US and increased trade tension. Average yield in the fixed income market moderated to 13.4 per cent in June 2018, down 69 basis points compared to December 2017, lowering earnings yields for most financial services outfits.
Additionally, the equities market closed the period flattish as the euphoria which greeted the beginning of the year fizzled out in the later part as investors took a flight to safety. Nevertheless, the group sustained growth in revenue and profitability buttressing the firm’s commitment to delivering superior value to shareholders always.
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