The Trinidad & Tobago’s based West Indian Tobacco Company (Witco) recorded profit before taxation of TT$556.3 million for the year ended December 2013, an increase of 16.8 percent over 2012 and profit after taxation of TT$411 million, an increase of 17.4 percent over the similar period.
More importantly, the final quarter’s revenue climbed by 17.8 percent to TT$341.4 million from TT$289.8 million in 2012 and profit surged 37.4 percent to $125.9 million from TT$91.6 million in 2012. Earnings per share for the last quarter amounted to $1.49 and $4.88 for the full year. The last quarter earnings place Witco on track to deliver profit for 2014 in the order of $6 per share. The improvement for the past year came against the back ground where the Carreras, the Jamaican the sister company that Witco is the main supplier of finished cigarettes, suffered a reduction in sales during the year.
Gross profit margin, an indication of how profitable a company can be, is at a level that most companies can only dream of at with an eye-popping 290 percent for the December quarter up from 248 percent in 2012 and 287 percent for the full year and 251.5 percent for 2012.
Cost was well contained for the year with distribution expenses falling from $20 million to $18 million. Administrative expenses fell to $94.6 million from $96.5 million and other operating expenses inched up by $1.5 million to $32.8 million while cost of sales fell moderately to $243.8 million by $3 million.
Witco approved a final dividend of $1.61 per share which brings the total dividend to $4.54 per share for out of the 2013 profit.
At the end of the year shareholders equity stood at TT$281 million with provision of $36 million for dividend and cash of $212 million. There was no interest bearing debt on the books.
Witco stock sells at $118 or 19.7 times estimated 2014 profit and is priced at 24 times 2013 profit.
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