Haycarb 3Q earnings surge amid higher sales

The Hayleys group’s coconut shell-based activated carbon manufacturer, Haycarb PLC, saw its earnings for the December quarter (3Q20) surging amid an impressive top line performance, backed by the higher sales volumes of the firm’s value-added activated carbon products.

The earnings for the quarter under review more than doubled to Rs.16.45 per share or Rs.488.8 million, compared to the earnings of Rs.7.12 per share or Rs.211.4 million reported for the corresponding period of the previous year.

The revenue for the period surged to Rs.6.2 billion, from Rs.5.3 billion. The cost of sales also increased by about Rs.500 million from a year ago to 
Rs.4.8 billion. The operating profit for the period almost doubled to Rs.800.5 million, from Rs.405.4 million a year ago.

For the nine months ended December 31, 2019, Haycarb reported earnings of Rs.36.88 per share or Rs.1.09 billion, compared to the earnings of Rs.17.36 per share or Rs.515.8 million reported for the same period, last year.

The revenue for the period rose 23 percent year-on-year to Rs.17.5 billion.

The firm’s activated carbon segment contributed Rs.14.8 billion to the revenue while the environmental engineering segment contributed Rs.2.7 billion.

“The growth in turnover and profitability is attributable to the increase in the activated carbon sales volumes and the change in the volume mix toward a higher value-added product range as a result of our key initiatives in developing breakthrough products and penetrating new strategic customer segments. The expansion of the raw material supply chain activities led by ‘Haritha Angara’ – the environmental friendly charcoaling project, enhanced our charcoal supplier base, allowing us to sustainably grow our manufacturing footprint, while reducing our dependence on the import of coconut charcoal,” Haycarb Managing Director Rajitha Kariyawasan said in an earnings review.

He also noted that Puritas (Pvt.) Ltd, the firm’s environmental engineering business segment, is expected to continue to be a key contributor to the group’s performance during the fourth quarter of the financial year, despite the challenging circumstances in the local and regional markets. 

Haycarb is the pioneer manufacturer of coconut shell activated carbon in any coconut producing country with manufacturing facilities in Sri Lanka, Thailand and Indonesia, supported by marketing offices in the USA, UK and Australia.

As at December 31, 2019, Hayleys PLC held a 67.73 percent stake in Haycarb while the state-controlled private sector pension fund, the Employees’ Provident Fund, held a 4.77 percent stake, being the second largest shareholder.