Shareholders approve Dangote Cement’s N20 per share dividend FY 2021

Shareholders of Dangote Cement Plc, a leading cement company in the country at the 13h Annual General Meeting approved a dividend of N20 dividend per share for the financial year ended December 31, 2021.

The dividend represents a 25% growth compared to the 2020 dividend of N16 per share, reinforcing its commitment to maximising shareholders’ value.

The company’s financial result for the year ended December 31, 2021, showed strong growth in earnings as group achieved its highest profit before tax in the company’s history at N538.4 billion.

The result shows continued headline growth from diverse income streams and resilience across all financial indicators, amidst macroeconomic headwinds during the year under review.

Cement demand was robust resulting in the group’s volume record of 29.3Mta, up 13%

What the group is saying

Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Chairman, Dangote Cement Plc, addressing the shareholders at the AGM, said: “Our exceptional EBITDA of N684.6 billion was up 43.2% owing to our strong cost control measures. Over the last decade, EBITDA has grown by a compound annual growth rate of 18% implying a fivefold increase and revealing a true growth story.

“Furthermore, in January 2022, the company completed the second tranche of its buy back programme. Dangote Cement has now purchased 0.98% of its outstanding shares. This share buy-back programme reflects the company’s unwavering commitment to creating value and identifying opportunities to return cash to shareholders.

“In 2021, we began operations in our new 3Mta Okpella plant in Edo State where we are successfully ramping up production and have contributed to creating a new industrial hub. We actively deploying our alternative fuel strategy across all countries of operations to optimise energy efficiency, reduce reliance on fossil fuels and ultimately reduce CO2 emission.

“Whilst we focussed our efforts on meeting the robust demand of our local market in Nigeria, at the expense of our export markets, we still made significant progress in our cement and clinker exports. In 2021, we exported 7 ships of clinker out of Nigeria and exported cement from 5 of our operations. Our vision is for West and Central Africa to be cement and clinker self-sufficient, while making the regional and continental free trade agreement a reality”.

Major highlights of the results include:

Analysis of the cement company’s financial result for the review year indicated that Group sales volume stood at 29.3Mt, with Nigeria accounting for 18.61Mt while operations in other countries did 10.86Mt.

Group revenue was N1,383.6 billion for the full year, made up of N993.34 billion from Nigeria while revenue from across African plants was N397.32 billion, in contrast to the group revenue of N1,034.20 billion in 2020 which constituted of N719.95 billion from Nigeria and N318.68 billion from other African operations.

Dangote Cement recorded a gross profit of N538.37 billion and after-tax profit of N364.44 billion while earnings per share (EPS) rose to N21.24 from N16.14. The directors have proposed a dividend of ₦20.00 per share.

What the shareholders are saying

Shareholders who spoke at the meeting including Sir Sunny Nwosu, Alhaji Farouk Umar, Mr. Nonah Awoh and Mrs. Bisi Bakare were unanimous in their commendation of the board and management of Dangote Cement, for the impressive financial performance which have translated to higher dividends despite the COVID-19 pandemic and rising inflation in the country.