Nestle Nigeria shareholders demand for bonus issue

Shareholders of Nestle Nigeria Plc have called on the Board of Directors and Management to consider issuing bonus shares to them, even as they commended the sterling performance of the company in the 2018 fiscal year.

They made the appeal at the company’s 50th Annual General Meeting in Lagos on Tuesday, May 28, 2019, during which they approved a final total dividend of N30.517 billion recommended by the directors for the year under review. The approved dividend translates to N38.50 per ordinary share.

Chairman of the company, Mr. David Ifezulike, said 2018 was particularly significant considering the unpredictable changes in the business and policy environment, especially as the influx of competing products unraveled a mixed bag of challenges and opportunities.

According to Ifezulike, economic activities remained relatively weak in the fourth quarter of 2018 after the slight increase in activities in the third quarter occasioned by higher oil production. On the average, spending power further decreased due to the elevated inflationary pressures as value-driven consumption decisions spiraled.

“With competition intensifying and the digital revolution disrupting the way consumers engage and interact with companies, we continued to focus on meeting consumer needs while increasing speed and efficiency to adapt to the changes in our environment,” Ifezulike said.

He added that “despite the business challenges in the year, our revenue increased by nine percent and profit after tax was 28 percent higher than our achievement in 2017. We are pleased with the results considering the high operating costs driven by the increased prices of raw materials and cost of doing business.”

Ifezulike noted that in line with the company’s policy of making shareholders the ultimate beneficiaries of its growth, the Board recommended a final dividend of N30.517 billion or N38.50 per ordinary share. “As in the past years, Nestlé’s brands remained leaders in their categories even with the influx of competitive brands in the market. Our marketing initiatives focused on creating nutrition awareness for our consumers who continue to trust us ti deliver high quality nutritious awareness for our consumers who continue to trust us to deliver high quality nutritious products. The extension of single serve pack formats helped drive penetration of our well-loved brands.”

He explained further that “We invested in the expansion of our routes to market, working with a motivated and dedicated distribution network.”

On the outlook for this year, Ifezulike said “ We are confident in the capacity of our people, our dedication to deliver high quality, tasty nutrition choices to our consumers and the continuous support of our stakeholders, we look towards 2019 with cautious optimism. We will continue to leverage our research and development capacities to delight our consumers while creating value for our business and everyone across our value chain.”