Expolanka closes 4Q with Rs. 575 m PAT

A focus on core fundamentals coupled with consistent and continuous business strategy enabled Expolanka to deliver yet another strong quarter of growth in terms of revenue and profitability.  

Continuing from its performance in Q3, Expolanka was able to deliver a revenue of Rs. 22.7 b for the quarter, reflecting a growth of +21% Year-on-Year (YoY) which resulted in an annual turnover of Rs. 95.4 b, a growth of +23% YoY.

The Logistics sector continued to remain the catalyst of performance and growth of the group similar to previous quarters and was primarily due to continued focus on the core business model of the company.

During the period in review, the company was able to generate a gross profit of Rs. 4.46 billion, representing a growth of +8% YoY, which resulted in the group delivering an annual gross profit of Rs. 18.1 b, an impressive growth of +32% YoY.

Consolidating on its operational efficiencies, Expolanka was able to generate Profit After Tax (PAT) of Rs. 575 m for the quarter, which was a robust growth of +55% YoY. The Group ended the year with a PAT of Rs. 1.9 b, a striking growth of +99% YoY. 

The Logistics sector contributed a strong top-line of Rs. 21.5 b, a YoY growth of +21%, whilst delivering an annual revenue of Rs. 90.9 b, reflecting a YoY growth of +25%. 

The continuous growth achieved by the business over the last several quarters is a reflection of the initiatives undertaken by the company in directing efforts towards increasing customer base, optimising service portfolio and enhancing value proposition.

Ensuing from the above, the logistics sector was able to generate a gross profit of Rs. 4.09 b for the quarter, which enabled the sector to deliver an annual gross profit of Rs. 16.7 b (+34% YoY) The GP margins, which were affected last year, stabilised this year closing at 18.4%, a result of concentrated efforts on capacity management and better planning. The improvements in margins coupled with focused efficiency initiatives enabled the sector to generate a PAT of Rs. 2.2 b for the year (+63% YoY).

From an operational perspective, volumes expanded across all key products, with the core Air Freight product maintaining stability. The Ocean product too performed well, showing strong growth.  

Consistent performance and growth has led to international recognition of the EFL brand with the company now listed as the 27th largest air freight forwarder, a direct result of the growth in volume the sector has been able to achieve during the year under review. 

All key trade lanes of the group exhibited growth, with the South Asia trade lane maintaining stability and the Far East trade lane showing impressive growth. The Europe trade lane and the Intra Asia trade lane too displayed growth within the company’s expectations during the year.

Furthermore, a key investment made by the group to develop the warehousing sector, is now operating at a reasonable scale generating improving returns. A focus on incremental growth, geared towards generating scale with efficiency has enabled consistent and stable performance within this business segment. 

Expolanka’s Leisure sector continued to extend its strong performance during the quarter posting a turnover of Rs. 343 million and gross profits of Rs. 279 million to conclude the quarter with a PAT of Rs. 10 million and an YTD PAT of Rs. 208 million. Moving forward, the brands within the sector aim to maintain its focus on core operations complemented by a wide range of value-added services. The performance was in line with our expectation despite the challenging market environment for the sector, over the last year.

Meanwhile, the group’s investment sector, which includes the group’s export operations, IT services company and the corporate office, contributed a further Rs. 891 million towards group turnover during the quarter, resulting in an annual revenue of Rs. 3.1 b.

The sector, which carries part of the group shared services and other cost centres was able to implement certain key cost efficiencies within the business during the current year.