Zichis profits soar 543% as egg, palm oil sales surge

Zichis Agro-Allied Industries Plc has reported a profit before tax of N478.7 million for the first half of 2026, representing a 448.6% increase from the corresponding period of 2025, driven by strong revenue growth across its agricultural and poultry business lines.

Profit after tax also surged 543.1% to N457.0 million during the period, according to the company’s unaudited financial statements for the six months ended June 30, 2026, which were filed with the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) at the close of business on Tuesday, July 28.

The strong earnings performance was underpinned by a 285.4% jump in revenue to N910.5 million, while gross profit climbed 415.2% to N619.6 million.

Basic earnings per share rose 216.7% to 38 kobo, up from 12kobo as shareholders’ equity grew by 70.2% year-on-year to N1.54 billion.

Key highlights (H1 2026 vs H1 2025):

Revenue: N910.5 million, up 285.4% YoY
Profit before tax: N478.7 million, up 448.6% YoY
Profit after tax: N457.0 million, up 543.1% YoY
Cost of sales: N290.9 million, up 150.7% YoY
Gross profit: N619.6 million, up 415.2% YoY
Administrative expenses: N140.9 million, up 326.8% YoY
Total assets: N3.60 billion, up 283.4% YoY
Total liabilities: N2.06 billion, up from N34.8 million
Long-term debt: N2.00 billion, compared with no long-term debt in H1 2025
Shareholders’ equity: N1.54 billion, up 70.2% YoY
Basic earnings per share: 38 kobo, up 216.7% YoY

Driving the numbers:

Full revenue breakdown by product segment for H1 2026 shows sharp increases across revenue points, with gross margin expanding even as cost of sales grew at a slower pace (150.7%) than revenue (285.4%).

Egg sales remained Zichis Agro-Allied’s largest revenue source in H1 2026, generating N288.95 million and accounting for 31.74% of total revenue.
Feed mill products followed N206.28 million (22.66%), while palm oil produce contributed N193.65 million (21.27%).
Palm oil recorded the fastest growth among all product lines, surging 984.85% year-on-year from N17.85 million to N193.65 million.
Feed mill products rose 440.85%; chicken revenue increased 382.25% to N150.70 million, while fish sales grew 176.04% to N70.89 million.

Together, egg, feed mill products and palm oil generated N688.88 million, representing 75.66% of the company’s N910.47 million H1 2026 revenue, underscoring their role as the key drivers of topline growth.

The remaining 24.34% of the H1 2026 revenue came from:

Chicken: N150.70 million, representing 16.55%
Fish: N70.89 million, representing 7.79%

Together, chicken and fish generated N221.59 million, accounting for the remaining 24.34% of the company’s N910.47 million revenue.

However, administrative expenses grew faster than revenue, rising 326.8% to N140.9 million and increasing to approximately 15.5% of revenue, from 14.0% in H1 2025.

Major expense drivers included salaries, AGM costs, listing-related expenses, professional fees, farm expenses, repairs, publicity, and depreciation, reflecting the costs associated with the company’s continued expansion and its relatively recent NGX listing.

Despite the faster growth in administrative costs, strong topline and gross margin performance ensured profitability jumped significantly faster than expenses, with profit after tax rising to N457.0 million from a much smaller base in H1 2025.

Balance sheet performance:

Total assets expanded sharply to N3.60 billion as of June 30, 2026, from N939.44 million a year earlier, representing growth of 283.4%.

The expansion was funded mainly by a new N2.00 billion long-term debt facility, as the company carried no long-term debt in the comparative period.
Property, plant and equipment doubled to N1.41 billion from N692.55 million, following significant investment in buildings, cages and utensils, biological assets, feed-mill equipment and machinery.
The company added approximately N667.95 million in fixed assets during the period.
Cash and bank balances increased sharply to N1.15 billion from just N4.80 million in H1 2025, largely supported by the N2.00 billion borrowing.
Inventories rose 463.5% to N669.39 million, from N118.80 million.
Total liabilities rose to N2.06 billion, from only N34.80 million in H1 2025, mainly due to the new long-term debt.
Liabilities now account for approximately 57.2% of total assets, compared with about 3.7% previously.
Shareholders’ equity increased 70.2% to N1.54 billion, supported by the period’s profit and higher revenue reserves, financing approximately 42.8% of total assets.

The N2.00 billion long-term debt introduces future interest and repayment obligations, though no finance cost was separately disclosed in the income statement.

The company ended the period with N1.15 billion in cash but received N2.00 billion in long-term debt, while also paying N120.00 million in dividends and incurring N35.85 million in listing and restructuring costs.

What you should know:

The results build on the company’s Q1 2026 performance, when Zichis reported a pre-tax profit of N241.4 million, up from N30.5 million in the prior-year quarter, driven by strong output across eggs, feed mill products, and palm oil.

Zichis listed on the Growth Board of the Nigerian Exchange at N1.81 per share on January 20, 2026, and has since become one of the market’s standout performers in terms of capital appreciation as well as dividend and bonus payments to shareholders.
The company’s share price closed on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at N25.00, recording a 7.2% drop from its previous closing price of N26.95.

The price has increased by 1,281.22% from its listing price of N1.81 per share to close at N25.00 per share, ranking second on the NGX in terms of year-to-date increase in price.

With strong revenue and profit growth sustained into H1 2026, the market is expected to react to the earnings release in subsequent trading sessions going forward.