Cement manufacturer PPC expects to report increased earnings for the year ended March, thanks to a strong performance by PPC Zimbabwe.
The Zimbabwean operation had an extended kiln shutdown during the prior period.
PPC expects headline earnings per share (HEPS) from continuing operations for the year ended March of 16.5c-20c after a loss of 20c a year ago.
Group HEPS are expected to improve to 27c-28.5c from a loss of 9c a year ago.
PPC said in the current period, PPC Zimbabwe changed its functional currency from the Zimbabwean dollar to the US dollar and that that had had a positive effect given the elimination of net monetary losses of R131m arising in the previous period due to hyperinflation accounting.
Due to the disposal by PPC of its 51% shareholding in Rwandan integrated cement manufacturer Cimerwa on January 25, its results for the period April 2023 to January 2024 will be shown as discontinued operations.
Business Day reported in April that PPC had signalled it would reward shareholders in this financial year either by reinstating dividend payments or through implementing a share repurchase programme.
PPC last paid a final dividend of 33c per share in November 2015 before scrapping payouts, as it then grappled with fallout from an ambitious African expansion strategy in which it racked up debt of about R5.2bn by end-September 2020.
This was followed by the Covid-19 pandemic rattling the construction and building industries.
However, the group has since been focused on paying down that debt. Despite overall cement sales volumes falling in SA and Botswana, the Johannesburg-based construction materials group managed to slash net debt to R381m by the end of September.
The sale of its 51% stake in Cimerwa for $42.5m now allows PPC to focus on its core Southern African markets.
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