Disposal of another asset helps Eveready posts Sh 267 million profit.

Eveready has reported a significant jump in its profits after it disposed off another asset that lifted its earnings

The battery seller reported a net profit of Sh267.2 million in the financial period ended December 31, 2017, coming from a loss of Sh206.5 million the company posted at the same time in 2016.

However, its core business shrunk further despite the better performance. It posted a 38.7 percent drop in battery sales from Sh553.3 million to Sh339 million in the period under review.

The firm’s Managing Director Jackson Mutua said despite the poor sales, the company was able to dispose of some of its assets, which led to the profit.

“The sale of our Nakuru property, which was finalized in the year under review, led to a gain of Sh452 million. The proceeds were used to clear the company’s debts and provide working capital to support the business,” he said.

Eveready closed down its dry cell factory in Nakuru in September 2014 as pressure from cheap imports drove it into losses. It now sells batteries imported mostly from Egypt and has diversified to other products such as car batteries.

In the financial results released yesterday, overhead expenses grew by 11.3 percent to Sh330.5 million from Sh296.8 million the previous year. Finance costs dropped by 86.5 percent to Sh9.7 million from Sh72.3 million.