Riyadh – Mubasher: Zahrat Al Waha for Trading on Monday posted its results for the first nine months of 2017, which showed a 9.91% year-on-year decline in net profits.

The company registered SAR 46.444 million in profits during the first three quarters down from SAR 51.554 million in the comparative period of 2016, according to a filing to the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul).

The trading company’s operational profits from January to September decreased by 2.04% to SAR 57.539 million, compared to SAR 58.738 million in the year-ago period.

The decline in net profits for the first nine months of 2017 is attributable to the increased cost of sales including higher electricity and transportations costs.  

Earnings per share (EPS) amounted to SAR 4.7 in the first nine months of the year, versus SAR 10.3 in the corresponding period of 2016.

At the level of Q3-17, Zahrat Al Waha made SAR 17.174 million in net profits, up 3.49% year-on-year from SAR 16.595 million.

The company’s operational profits from July to September were almost stable at SAR 19.253 million from SAR 19.275 million in the year-ago period, Zahrat Al Waha’s data showed.

On the other hand, the growth of Zahrat Al Waha’s quarterly profits was due to a 35.75% year-on-year increase in sales in the period along with the decrease of administrative expenses.