Cadbury Suffers N19bn Loss

The shareholders of consumer goods firm, Cadbury Nigeria Plc, will get no dividend payment for the financial year 2023 as the firm suffered N19. 09bn loss after tax.

According to its annual report and financial statements for the year ended December 2023 filed with the Nigerian Exchange Limited on Tuesday, the loss was a 3,374 per cent tumble from a profit of N583.11m in 2022.

In 2023, Cadbury’s revenue grew by 46 per cent to N80.38bn from N55.21bn in the previous year.

Due to the loss incurred, the directors of the company did not recommend any dividend for the year, unlike the N751.28bn dividend that shareholders enjoyed in 2022.

The retained earnings of the firm turned a negative of N11.36bn, resulting in a negative total equity of N6.51bn from N13.30bn.

The net finance cost surged by over 3000 per cent to N36.03bn from N1.10bn.

Cadbury Nigeria Plc is owned 74.97 per cent (2022: 74.97 per cent) by Cadbury Schweppes Overseas Limited incorporated in the United Kingdom while CSOL is owned by Mondelēz International.

About 25.03 per cent (2022: 25.03 per cent) is owned by a highly diversified spread of individual and institutional shareholders.

The company’s brands fall into three principal categories, namely cocoa beverages, gum and candy and intermediate cocoa products.

The firm was incorporated in Nigeria on January 9, 1965, as a company limited by shares.

It started trading on the Nigerian Stock Exchange in 1976.

While its principal activities are the manufacture and sale of branded fast-moving consumer goods mostly to the Nigerian market and for exports in West Africa, the company also produces a wide range of intermediate products such as cocoa butter, liquor, cake and powder.

Its cocoa processing factory in Ondo State produces a range of intermediate products such as cocoa butter, liquor and powder.