United Power profit drops

United Power Generation and Distribution Company Limited (UPGDCL) has reported a 24 percent drop in its net profit in the first three quarters of the 2019-20 financial year in the absence of any extraordinary gain from its subsidiary companies.

"There was an extraordinary gain arising out of the disposal of subsidiaries during the corresponding period of the previous year, and no such gain has occurred during the period that ended on March 31, 2020," Badrul Haque Khan, company secretary of the United Power, told The Business Standard. 

"Ashuganj 53MW power plant was fully operational in the previous period but during the current period, the plant is not in operation as the contract period has expired. An application for its renewal is under process. Net profit has decreased due to the above reasons," he added. 

According to the three quarters' unaudited financial statement – which was disclosed on Tuesday evening – the company's net profit was Tk482.46 crore and earnings per share (EPS) Tk8.94 – down from Tk629.23 crore and EPS Tk11.71 respectively in the same period of the previous year. 

The company's revenue also decreased by 5 percent compared to that of the three quarters of the previous year, and stood at Tk802.43 crore.

Meanwhile, in the third quarter of the current financial year, the total sales of the company stood at Tk259.34 crore, which is three percent lower than that of the previous year. At that time, the net profit decreased by 38 percent to Tk158.33 crore, and EPS was Tk2.93. 

In the last financial year, the company made a net profit of Tk770.46 crore, and paid 130 percent cash and 10 percent stock dividend to its shareholders.

The paid-up capital of United Power is currently Tk526.99 crore.

Sponsors and directors together owned 90 percent of company shares till February this year. The institutional, foreign and general investors owned 7.13 percent, 0.05 percent and 2.82 percent shares respectively.

The closing price of the company's each share was Tk220.20 at the Dhaka Stock Exchange on Wednesday. The shares hit the highest price of Tk415 last year.

Presently, United Power has Ashuganj Power Company Limited under United Energy, United Mymensingh Power, United Jamalpur Power, and United Anowar Power Plant as its subsidiary companies. 

The parent company also acquired 75 percent shares of Leviathan Global BD Limited, which was under United Enterprise and Company, a subsidiary company of UPGDCL.