Delfi's Q4 profit soars 356.8%; gross profit margin hits record 38.4%

DELFI Limited on Wednesday posted a 356.8 per cent surge in net profit to US$3.7 million for the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2016, lifted by a record margin of 38.4 per cent.

Revenue for the chocolate confectionery firm, formerly known as Petra Foods, had rose 5.6 per cent to US$105.6 million on the back of a 4.5 per cent rise in revenue from sales in Indonesia.

Delfi said that the improvement in gross profit margin was due to higher sales of premium Own Brands products, price increases and product resizing implemented in Q3 last year and Q2 this year, as well as on-going cost-containment initiatives.

The group has proposed a final dividend payout of 1.35 S cents per share. Together with the interim dividend of 1.83 S cents per share, it brings the total dividend for the year to 3.18 S cents per share and represents a dividend payout ratio of 50 per cent for the fiscal year.