September 24, 2021
Express Catering Limited (ECL), for the three months ended August 31, 2021, revenues rose by 719% for the period to US$3.64 million (2020: US$444,140). According to the company, “This represents a more than seven-fold increase compared to the prior year. The company is now back to twenty-five of the twenty-seven operating locations following the suspension of all units in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Cost of sales (COS) rose by 679% for the period to US$1.24 million (2020: US$159,423). Nonetheless, gross profit increased year-on-year for the three-month period by 742%, to US$2.40 million from US$284,717 in 2020.
Total expenses rose by 59% for the period in review to US$1.67 million, up from US$1.05 million in 2020. This increase was associated with an 11% increase in administrative expenses from US$471,249 in 2020 to US$993,374 in 2021. Depreciation and Amortization saw a 17% increase to US$678,444 compared to US$581,864 for 2020. Promotional expenses amounted to US$1,314 (US$1,498).
Consequently, operating profit for the first quarter amounted to US$723,545 versus an operating loss of US$769,894 recorded in the same period last year.
Finance cost of US$514,646 (US$314,185) was booked for the period. Foreign exchange loss amounted to US$328 for the period. This resulted in total comprehensive income of US$565,068 compared to total comprehensive loss of US$1.08 million booked in the corresponding period for 2020.
The twelve-month trailing loss-per-share was US 0.0052 cents. While for Q1 2021, the EPS amounted to US 0.035 cents (2020 LPS: US 0.066 cents). The number of shares used in our calculations was 1,637,500,000 units. Notably, ECL closed the trading period on September 24, 2021, at a price of J$4.93.
ECL notes, “Construction work on the revamp post-security food and beverage is projected to commence in September 2021. The first phase will see the relocation of existing brands to designated areas in the new food court. We expect to benefit from this transformation in the winter season commencing December 2021.”
Balance Sheet Highlights:
The company, as at August 31, 2021, recorded total assets of US$40.50 million compared to US$31.59 million as at August 2020. This was mainly as a result of a significant increase in ‘Assets due from related companies’ from US$3.57 million in 2020 to US$8.80 million in 2021.
Total Stockholders’ equity as at August 31, 2021 closed at US$2.81 million (2020: US$2.90 million) This resulted in a book value of US0.17 cents (2020: US 0.18 cents).
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