British American Tobacco’s cigarette sales drop 5% in Q3

July To Sep 2020 Financials: 

• 986.19 crore cigarette sticks sales in Q3 2020, 1,044.21 crore in Q3 2019
• Paid Tk4,289.64 crore in VAT & supplementary duty
• Net sales after taxes stood at Tk1,273.71 crore
• Net profit stood at Tk271.81 crore
• EPS was Tk15.10
• Declared 300% interim cash dividend

The multinational cigarette company, British American Tobacco Bangladesh has reported a 5% decline in sales of its cigarette sticks in the third quarter of this year.

According to an official of the company, cigarette sales have dropped due to a decline in people's income caused by the novel coronavirus pandemic.

In the July-September period, the company sold 986.19 crore sticks across the country, down from 1,044.21 crore at the same time in the previous year.

In its three quarters' financial statement, British American Tobacco on Wednesday evening reported cigarette sales of Tk5,563.35 crore, a decrease by 7% from that in the same period of the previous year.

In the third quarter of this year, the company paid the government Tk4,289.64 crore in VAT and supplementary duty.

After paying all kinds of taxes, net sales of the company stood at Tk1,273.71 crore in the third quarter of the current financial year.

However, at the same time, the company's net profit increased by 2% compared to that in the third quarter of the previous year and stood at Tk271.81 crore despite a decrease in sales revenue. Its earnings per share was Tk15.10.

An official of the company said the net profit has increased significantly because the company has reduced its operating cost and cost of products.

In the first three quarters of the current year, the total revenue of the company stood at Tk20,380 crore and its earnings per share was Tk48.45.

Meanwhile, the company has exported 30.77 crore sticks worth Tk26.86 crore during the first nine months, which were 1,386% and 1,185% higher respectively than in the previous year at the same time.

Meanwhile, the export of tobacco leaves has dropped by 49% to Tk100.85 crore due to a decrease in prices.

The company has declared a 300% interim cash dividend for its shareholders, considering the first three quarters' financial statement of this year. The company has also set 11 November as the record date to decide the dividend holders.

The British American Tobacco Bangladesh Company Ltd gave 400% cash dividend to its shareholders in the last financial year. 

The company, which entered the stock market in 1977, has a paid-up capital of Tk180 crore.

The closing price of British American Tobacco's shares was Tk1,109.70 on Thursday at the Dhaka Stock Exchange. Its highest price reached Tk1,205 per share within the last year. 

Sponsor directors hold 72.91%, the government, institutional, foreign and general investors respectively have 0.64%, 11.11%, 12.12% and 3.22% shares of the company.