UAC of Nigeria PLC reported unaudited earnings results for the second quarter and six months ended June 30, 2018. For the quarter, the company reported EBIT of NGN 1,488 million, profit before tax of NGN 1,129 million and net profit from continuing operations attributable to shareholders of NGN 414 million or 32 kobo per annualized basic earnings per share on revenue of NGN 18,670 million against EBIT of NGN 2,017 million, profit before tax of NGN 885 million and net profit from continuing operations attributable to shareholders of NGN 486 million or 51 kobo per annualized basic earnings per share on revenue of NGN 22,953 million reported for the same period a year ago. LTM Return on Equity was 0.6% against 1.1% reported a year ago period. Free cash flow was a negative NGN 3,377 million compared to a positive NGN 6,448 million in 2017.

For the six months period, the company reported EBIT of NGN 2,718 million, profit before tax of NGN 2,102 million and net profit from continuing operations attributable to shareholders of NGN 736 million or 67 kobo per annualized basic earnings per share on revenue of NGN 36,982 million against EBIT of NGN 3,901 million, profit before tax of NGN 1,831 million and net profit from continuing operations attributable to shareholders of NGN 984 million or 123 kobo per annualized basic earnings per share on revenue of NGN 47,337 million reported for the same period a year ago. LTM Return on Equity was 1.1% against 2.2% reported a year ago period. Revenue was down 21.9% Y-o-Y to NGN 37.0 billion, mainly due to a decline in sales in the Animal Feeds & other Edibles segment, where market dynamics remained challenging in second quarter 2018 and were exacerbated by the pastoral conflict in Jos, Plateau State, which impacted Grand Cereals' business operations. EBIT declined by 30.5% to 2.7 billion in first half of 2018, on the back of lower revenue and an 11.0% increase in operating expenses, both primarily driven by Animal Feeds & other Edibles. Free cash flow was a negative NGN 5,646 million compared to a positive NGN 1,328 million in first half of 2017.

The company's outlook for fiscal year 2018 remains positive.