Presco Plc kicked off 2026 with first-quarter revenue up 7.5% year-on-year to ₦100.9 billion, propelled by Nigeria’s 13.2% surge to ₦84.4 billion via higher crude palm oil (CPO) prices and volumes—though Ghana’s segment fell 14.5% to ₦16.5 billion.
Cost of goods sold dropped 4.8% to ₦9.6 billion, driven by lower raw material use (₦153 million vs. ₦2.1 billion), lifting gross margin 1.2 points to 90.5%.
Earnings before interest and tax margin slipped to 71% from 73.7%, pressured by 2.1% operating expense growth to ₦15.8 billion and ₦6.4 billion exchange losses (vs. ₦184 million gain).
Profitability Mixed
| Item | Q1’26 | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ₦100.9B | +7.5% |
| Gross Margin | 90.5% | +1.2 pts |
| EBIT Margin | 71.0% | -2.7 pts |
| PBT Margin | 68.7% | +6.2 pts |
| Net Margin | 48.8% | -1.9 pts |
| Total FY25 Dividend | ₦44.66/sh | +6.3% |
Source: Presco Plc
Operating income jumped 78.8% to ₦2.4 billion; other gains soared 160% to ₦108 million. Net finance costs plunged 77.1% to ₦2.4 billion on deleveraging, boosting pretax profit margin to 68.7% from 62.5%. Higher effective tax (28.9% vs. 18.9%) and share dilution trimmed net margin 1.9 points to 48.8%; EPS fell to ₦42.22 from ₦47.58.
Following a strong FY 2025 where Profit After Tax surged to ₦121.35 billion, Presco’s Board of Directors has recommended a final dividend of ₦14.66 per share. This brings the total dividend payout for the 2025 financial year to ₦44.66 per share, up from ₦42.00 in the previous period.
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