Unilever Ghana to pay first dividend in 5 years
Unilever Ghana Plc will deliver its first dividend to shareholders in five years, declaring 40 pesewas per share for the 2023 financial year.
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The company is expected to pay GH¢25 million to shareholders on June 24 this year.
This is after it recorded a profit of GH¢141 million in 2023, an increase of 838 per cent as against the GH¢15million profit gained in 2022.
It also posted a revenue growth of 44 per cent, which equates to GH¢908 million in 2023, up from GH¢632 million in 2022.
The multinational consumer goods company also increased its cash equivalent position with a total of GH¢109 million in 2023, compared with the deficit of GH¢59 million it suffered in 2022.
These came to light when the British-owned conglomerate marked its 50 years of operations in Ghana with an Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Accra last Thursday.
Personal care business
Providing a breakdown of how the company came about its surge in profit, the Managing Director, Chris Wulff-Caesar, said the company’s business delivered a strong underlying sales growth of 45.3 per cent. This included the beauty and well-being products category posting a sterling performance to close the year at 110 per cent.
“Pepsodent and Lifebuoy continued to impact lives through the school and community behavioural change campaigns on day and night brushing and proper handwashing respectively; these two major purpose activities reached over two million Ghanaians,” he stated.
He said the personal care business category of the company is still on a small scale but hopes to grow it competitively and profitably through volume and expand the portfolio into emerging and growing segments.
Homecare and nutrition business
Mr Wulf-Caesar also touched on the homecare and nutrition components of the business and revealed that the homecare business achieved an underlying sales growth of 30.7 per cent.
“This category continued with its strong focus on driving volume recovery and enhancing profitability,” he stated.
He disclosed that the year 2023 saw its bar soap, Key-Soap, re-introduce the Key Adepa 250g to meet the growing needs of its mid-size bar consumers.
“Also, with a new strategic direction, the home, hygiene and powders portfolio was also revamped to enhance competitiveness within the market,” he stated.
He added that the company will focus on profitable volume recovery for all sub-categories and portfolio expansion this year.
On the company’s nutrition business, Mr Wulff-Caesar noted that it achieved a growth of 90 per cent on the back of improved supplies and is expected to expand this year.
CSR
On Corporate Social Responsibilities, Nana Yaa Owusu-Ansah, Brand Building Director of Unilever, noted that the company teamed up with the Tema Municipal Authority (TMA) and the Twedase Basic School in Tema to plant 200 trees to mark World Environment Day.
“Work has also commenced in both the Upper West and Greater Accra Regions to recruit 300 additional women into the company’s women empowerment project dubbed Shakit/Songtaa,” she noted
Shareholders concern
Some shareholders of the company queried why the company’s marquee brands, such as Omo, Key Soap and Pepsodent, have paled in attraction compared to the imported brands.
They tasked the company to resuscitate such brands and make them vibrant in the market.