Net profits of Apex Footwear, a publicly traded company, witnessed a sharp decline by 48.49% in the fiscal year ending on June 30, 2020, with the company’s sales dropping due to Covid-19 both in domestic and export markets.
Amid declining profitability, the board of directors of the company on Monday declared only a 25% cash dividend for the last fiscal year.
The dividend is the lowest in 12 years.
According to the financial statement for the fiscal year 2019-20, Apex Footwear, the local giant in footwear and leather goods manufacturing, made net profits of Tk6.32 crore, down by 48.49%, which had been Tk 12.27 crore in the FY19.
Consequently, earnings per share (EPS) of the company declined by 48.50% to Tk5.62, which had been Tk10.91 in the previous fiscal year.
The company saw a decline in earnings as it had missed sales during the last Eid-ul-Fitr, the main season for sales, due to the countrywide lockdown enforced to halt the coronavirus epidemic.
Besides, exports of footwear and leather goods also declined due to supply chain disruption across the globe caused by the pandemic.
“The sharp fall of earnings was caused by lower sales during the April-June period this year as the country went through a shutdown to stop the spread of coronavirus,” Md. Omar Faruque, Company Secretary of Apex Footwear, told Dhaka Tribune.
Usually, around 40% of sales are done during Eid-Ul-Fitr, when mostly new and valuable products are sold, added Faruque.
But due to the pandemic, the company missed the prime sales as well as general sales as people avoided shopping due to the covid pandemic, he said further.
As per the financial statement of the company, the annual turnover also dropped by 25.25% to Tk1,181 crore in FY 2019-20, which was Tk 1,580 crore in the FY19.
The company also reported net asset value (NAV) per share of Tk249.95 and net operating cash flow per share (NOCFPS) of Tk144.14 for the year ending on June 30, 2020 as against Tk249.83 and Tk 86.29 respectively for the same period of the previous year.
Meanwhile, shares in Apex Footwear closed the day (Tuesday) at Tk233.90, down by 3.17% from Tk243.10 per share in the previous session on the Dhaka bourse.
Apex Footwear recommended a 25% cash dividend for FY20, while it disbursed 55% cash dividend for FY19, 50% for FY17, 50% for FY 15, 55% for FY14 and 55% cash dividend for FY13.
The EGM and annual general meeting (AGM) will be held on November 12 at 11:00am and 11:15am respectively through digital platforms. The record date for EGM and AGM is October 12.
Apex Footwear is a sister concern of Apex Group. It manufactures and retails quality footwear in the country.
It sells footwear and leather goods through its 260 sales points across the country.
It also exports leather goods and footwear to 135 global clients in Europe, North America and Japan.
The company was listed on the Dhaka Stock Exchange in 1993. It belongs to the “A” category.
