December 10, 2019
Elite Diagnostic Limited’s (ELITE) held their second Annual General Meeting (AGM) on December 10, 2019 at the Knutsford Court Hotel. Chairman, Mr. Steven Gooden, highlighted that Elite continues to exceed expectations. The Chairman stated that, “looking at the core performance of the company, net profit before tax increased 44%, despite not including the full use of the Liguanea Branch as well as the expenses incurred by setting up the Drax Hall branch.” Also according to Mr. Gooden, “the improved financial performance was achieved by tighter and more stringent in-house controls, as well as, renewed marketing efforts to promote brand Elite and our service to the public, these efforts included participation in Medical Conferences, Gleaner Advertisements, Sponsorships and Social marketing efforts.”
Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Warren Chung, mentioned that the last financial year showed much improvements over the prior year. For the year under review revenues were $107.1 million more than 2018’s $297.8 million, and as a result closed the period at $404.8 million. The movement was driven by greater utilization of the Elite Diagnostic Liguanea branch with upgraded equipment, the overall increase of imaging services and extended opening hours. This translated into a net profit before tax of $51.8 million versus $35.9 million a year ago. The Company’s recent financials for the first three months ended September 30, 2019 saw revenues increasing from $85.4 million in 2018 to $118 million in 2019. Consequently, there was a $14.86 million increase in net profit to $16.69 million compared to $1.84 million of last year.
Warren Chung stated that, “the construction of the Drax Hall location was completed in the late fourth quarter and there was a soft opening in late September 2019. We are expecting to be profitable in that location in the near future. We believe that part of the island is underserved and ELITE will fill and capitalize on that void. ELITE’s primary focus is on patient care and customer service. We will continue to invest in state of the art equipment, infrastructure and staff in order to maintain our position as Jamaica’s primer imaging company.”
The Drax Hall location was opened in the first quarter of 2019, “offering superior care and services to St. Ann, while simultaneously expanding our customer base, supporting the St. Ann’s Bay Hospital in close proximity and mitigating the impact of increased competition in the Kingston corporate area,” according to the CEO. Mr. Chung also mentioned, “the combined number of machines, staff and locations we possess, offers improved business continuity and the ability to manage overflow within the Company instead of referring to the competition. This combination of solid performance and infrastructure investments allows us to compete now and will serve us well into the future as we grow market share and continue to innovate in the sector.”
Mr. Chung also noted that, “upon completion of our Drax Hall branch, combined with our Holborn Road and Liguanea branches, Elite Diagnostics is uniquely positioned to serve our clientele island wide, while standardizing the level of patient care and service that can be expected outside of Kingston.”
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