Centum Group has reported a decline in profit after tax to Sh812.82 million for the year ending March 2025, down from Sh2.60 billion in the prior period.
This significant drop was primarily attributed to two key factors: reduced fair value gains on investment properties following an exceptional transaction in the previous year, and a substantial Sh1.2 billion deferred tax charge resulting from regulatory changes.
Notably, the tax rate on land not held for sale increased from 5% to 15%, creating additional headwinds for the group’s financial performance.
Despite these challenges, Centum demonstrated resilience in its core operations. The group achieved a 28% growth in total comprehensive income to Sh3.26 billion from Sh2.54 billion in the previous period, while maintaining robust cash performance across most business segments.
This suggests that while accounting adjustments impacted reported profits, the fundamental strength of Centum’s diversified portfolio remains intact.
The group’s balance sheet also showed expansion, with total assets growing from Sh76.17 billion to Sh82.35 billion. However, this growth was accompanied by an increase in total liabilities from Sh36.41 billion to Sh39.11 billion.
Centum’s subsidiaries and business units recorded mixed performance in the period as its investment company recorded a slight decrease in profit after tax from Sh555.97 million in 2024 to Sh547.14 million.
This was despite the company reducing its investment acquisition debt by over one billion, bringing the outstanding balance down to Sh690 million from Sh1.95 billion the previous year.
Its trading businesses continued to face challenges, recording a loss of Sh489.83 million in the current period, despite being a significant improvement from the Sh705.90 million loss reported in 2024.
The financial services segment showed a remarkable turnaround, posting a profit of Sh90.18 million compared to a Sh500.37 million loss in the previous year, signaling successful restructuring efforts. However, the real estate division experienced a decline in profitability, falling to Sh1.50 billion from Sh3.60 billion.
Its Two Rivers Special Economic Zone (SEZ) delivered an impressive profit growth to Sh88 million while its Two Rivers development group recorded a loss of Sh242.70 million.
This mixed performance across business units reflects both the ongoing challenges in certain sectors and the emerging successes in Centum’s value-driven projects.
In light of these results, the Board declared a dividend of Sh0.32 per share, continuing a downward trend from the Sh1.20 dividend paid in 2019.
