Hayleys completes strong year of growth

Hayleys PLC said yesterday it has posted Profit before Tax (PBT) of Rs. 6.8 billion for the financial year 2015/16, a 7% increase over the previous year. 

In a statement it said Earnings per Share (EPS) increased to Rs. 40.05 from Rs. 34.42 per share in the previous year. “This strong growth reflects the effectiveness of the Conglomerate’s focused strategy on expanding its core business sectors and ended the year with a Group turnover of Rs. 92 billion,” Hayleys statement added. The Group’s Income Tax paid during the year, inclusive of Super Gain Tax, amounted to Rs. 2.3 billion.

Group post- tax profit grew by 4% to surpass Rs. 5 billion mark and net profit attributable to equity holders of parent rose by 16% to top Rs. 3 billion mark.

Hayleys PLC Chairman and Chief Executive Mohan Pandithage said: “Hayleys has focused on the segments with the greatest long-term growth potential and I am extremely pleased to note that all our sectors have shown profitability while we have further strengthened our market leadership in most of the sectors we operate in.”

The Transportation and Logistics Sector contributed Rs. 1.5 billion Profit Before Interest & Tax (PBIT) in profits to the Group bottom line. The sector has continued to drive new business opportunities both locally and internationally and has introduced a number of outstanding innovations across its business segments that boost its service offerings. Among the noteworthy new ventures is the Hayleys – Free Zone, a state-of-the-art entreport trade facility, including cold storage, which offers businesses the opportunity to value-add and repackage products for export. 

Agriculture sector PBIT grew to Rs. 1.2 billion from Rs. 1 billion in the last fiscal year. The sector diversified into a number of new business areas during the last two years, which have contributed to growth.

The Purification sector contributed over Rs. 1.2 billion in PBIT for the financial year 2015/16.In addition to being a major contributor to Group profits, the sector has also lead the Group’s efforts to improve the living and economic conditions of the people in the North and North Central Province suffering from Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD). As of May 2016, Hayleys companies have contributed over Rs. 44 million towards setting up ten Reverse Osmosis (RO) plants. The ten plants provide a cumulative 100,000 litres of clean drinking water per day to 15 villages and over 20,000 people in the region. 

All sectors in the Group recorded profits, with strong contributions also arising from Alumex, Leisure, Power & Energy, whilst the Fibre and Textiles sectors continued to demonstrate robust recovery and stabilisation. 

The Hand Protection and Plantation sectors continued to be affected by global rubber and tea prices and adverse weather conditions. The Hand Protection sector is increasingly shifting towards more value added exports to improve profit margins and manage increasing input costs.

During the year, the Hayleys Group was ranked the number one company of Sri Lanka in LMD’s Top 100 Companies of Sri Lanka.

The Board of Directors of Hayleys PLC comprises Mohan Pandithage (Chairman and Chief Executive), Dhammika Perera (Co-Chairman), Rizvi Zaheed, Nimal Perera, Sarath Ganegoda, Rajitha Kariyawasan, Dr. Harsha Cabral PC, Dr. Mahesha Ranasoma, Lalin Samarawickrama, Ruwan Waidyaratne and  Hisham Jamaldeen.