Riyadh-Mubasher: AlJazira Capital said Qassim Cement’s earnings for the second quarter of 2015 were 1.6% and 3.4% higher than its estimates and market consensus, respectively.

The cement producer posted a 4.3% rise in the second-quarter net earnings to SAR 168 million, compared with SAR 161 million a year earlier.

“We forecast the company’s sales to continue its growth trajectory in 2015, due to an expected higher operating utilization rate of 106.5%, as compared to 97.3% in 2014,” AlJazira Capital said.

It added that the growth story is likely to be muted in the short-term, due to weakness of selling price. 

The research firm  remains ‘Overweight’ on the stock, lowing the target price to SAR 108.60.