Share

Argent Industrial's earnings soar

Johannesburg - Argent Industrial [JSE:ART], which serves the steel, automotive and construction sectors announced on Thursday that headline earnings per share were 55.3 cents for the year ended in March, from 11.9 cents previously.

It noted basic earnings per share of 59 cents, from 10.2 cents in 2010.

Revenue climbed to R1.75bn, from R1.46bn, while operating profit increased to R101.9m, from R46.53m.

Earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation stood at R142.7m, the group said.

The directors declared a final dividend of three cents per share for the year ended in March, while total ordinary dividends per share in respect of the financial year to March 31 2011 amounted to seven cents, from nine cents in 2010.

"Given Argent's substantial involvement in the steel and automotive sectors and taking the group's restructuring costs into account, Argent produced a satisfactory set of results," the group said.

It pointed out that the higher turnover levels did not do much to increase the operating income to historical levels due to the lower margins experienced by the steel trading operations and the dismal performance of Argent's automotive companies.

The group said that its automotive sector had been restructured into a model that was more cost-effective, efficient and sustainable. "The recent Japanese tsunami has created original equipment plant closures worldwide, including SA and this has adversely affected the first two months of the current financial year.

"The rest of the group's operations performed in line with expectations and will continue to improve in line with the recovering global economy," it said.

Argent said that the number of structural changes that occurred during the year resulted in monthly saving for the group of R941 015.

It said that the restructure cost for the group amounted to R1.89m which included the retrenchment of 84 people, 41 of which were on short term contracts. The group's total number of employees was thus, in part due to these retrenchments, reduced from 3 416 to 3 172.

By 16.49 local time, shares in Argent slumped 64 cents or 7.08% to 8.40 rand on the JSE.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
18.94
-0.2%
Rand - Pound
23.91
-0.1%
Rand - Euro
20.43
+0.2%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.34
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.2%
Platinum
910.50
+1.5%
Palladium
1,011.50
+1.0%
Gold
2,221.35
+1.2%
Silver
24.87
+0.9%
Brent-ruolie
86.09
-0.2%
Top 40
68,346
+1.0%
All Share
74,536
+0.8%
Resource 10
57,251
+2.8%
Industrial 25
103,936
+0.6%
Financial 15
16,502
-0.1%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders