BUA Foods Plc to pay shareholders N63 billion dividend

BUA Foods Plc will reward shareholders with a dividend payout of N63 billion translating to N3.50 per share for the 2021 financial year, the company said in a notice on Thursday.

Payment is subject to appropriate withholding tax and will be made to shareholders whose names appear in the register of members as at the close of business on July 13, according to the document seen by PREMIUM TIMES.

The move means BUA Foods, which reached a crucial milestone in January on gaining listing on the Nigerian bourse, will hand out 90.3 per cent of its net profit for the year to shareholders.

Five autonomous food processing units comprising rice, flour, edible oils, sugar and pasta, operating under BUA Group, a conglomerate controlled by Nigeria’s second richest man Abdulsamad Rabiu, consolidated last year to form the company.

It is now Nigeria’s second biggest company by valuation at N1.1 trillion, lagging slightly behind chocolate maker Nestle Nigeria Plc.

The dividend will be paid electronically to shareholders on August 4.

“Shareholders who are yet to complete the e-dividend Mandate registration are advised to fill the Registrars E-Dividend Mandate form,” the company said.

BUA Food’s first annual general meeting after listing holds August 4, according to the board.

Revenue for the review period reached N333.3 billion, having accelerated by 72.8 per cent compared to a year ago, while asset grew more than three-fifths to N392.8 billion.

The company’s outstanding shares total 18 billion.