Dangote Cement closed out the first half of 2026 with one of its strongest quarterly profit growths in years, with Nigeria doing the heavy lifting, costs stayed under control, and a shrinking debt profile.
The cement giant reported pre-tax profit of N981.39 billion for the six months ended June 30, 2026, up 34.43% from N730.03 billion a year earlier.
Profit after tax rose 22.69% to N638.53 billion, translating to earnings per share of N38.22, up from N30.74.
The gap between the pre-tax and after-tax growth rates is itself worth noting; tax took a larger bite this year than last, tempering what would otherwise have been an even more dramatic headline number.
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The H1 performance was buoyed by a strong second quarter, which contributed about 57% of the six-month pre-tax profit.
Q2 pre-tax profit rose to N560.22 billion, up 33.02% from N421.17 billion in Q1 2026 and 34.01% from N418.06 billion in Q2 2025, supported by higher sales volumes, revenue growth ahead of volume growth, improved gross margins and lower finance costs.
Key Highlights (H1 2026 vs. H1 2025)
- Revenue: N2.51 trillion (Up 21.35% YoY from N2.07 trillion)
- Gross profit: N1.59 trillion (Up 30.51% YoY from N1.22 trillion)
- Operating profit: N1.06 trillion (Up 30.66% YoY from N810.98 billion)
- Profit after tax: N638.53 billion (Up 22.69% YoY from N520.46 billion)
- Earnings per share: N38.22 (Up 24.33% YoY from N30.74)
- Production volume: 14.49 million tons (Up 11.64% YoY from 12.98 million tons
- Sales volume: 14.94 million tons (Up 11.79% YoY from 13.37 million))
- Total financial liabilities: N646.17 billion (Down 44.28% from N1.16 trillion at December 2025).
- Cash and cash equivalents: N796.28 billion (Up 100.29% from N397.57 billion at December 2025)
- Total assets: N6.62 trillion (Up 9.62% from N6.04 trillion at December 2025)
- Shareholders’ funds: N3.07 trillion (Up 21.94% from N2.52 trillion at December 2025)
Driving the numbers
Revenue growth reflected a combination of higher production volumes and improved pricing or product mix.
- Group production volume increased by 11.64% to 14.49 million tons in the first half of 2026, from 12.98 million tons a year earlier.
- Second-quarter production rose by 13.16% to 7.28 million tons.
- Sales volume also increased, rising by 11.79% to 14.94 million tons in the first half and by 9.90% to 7.47 million tons in the second quarter.
However, revenue grew faster than both production and sales volumes, increasing by 21.35% in the first half and 22.19% in the second quarter.
This indicates that higher selling prices and revenue mix were also important contributors, rather than growth coming from volume alone.
Segment performance
Nigeria remained the group’s main earnings driver. First-half revenue from Nigeria increased by 25.17% to N1.81 trillion, while Pan-African revenue rose by 13.67% to N775.35 billion. Nigeria contributed about 71.8% of reported group revenue before eliminations.
- Profitability in Nigeria was also substantially stronger. The Nigerian business recorded first-half EBITDA of N1.09 trillion, with an EBITDA margin of about 60.1%.
- Pan-Africa generated EBITDA of N136.67 billion, translating to a margin of about 17.6%.
Pan-African revenue expanded, but EBITDA was broadly flat, showing that the region faced greater cost pressure.
Production cost
Production costs increased by only 8.29% to N924.31 billion, well below revenue growth. This improved the gross margin to approximately 63.2% from 58.8% in the prior-year period.
- Fuel and power remained the largest production-cost component, although the expense was broadly stable at N384.49 billion.
- Material costs increased by 34.45%, while royalty expenses rose sharply.
Selling and distribution expenses increased by 25.03% to N401.85 billion, mainly because haulage costs rose to N318.59 billion.
Finance cost
Finance costs declined by 48.14% to N112.11 billion, supported by lower interest expenses.
However, the group recorded a net foreign exchange loss of N45.03 billion in the first half, compared with a gain in the prior-year period.
Balance sheet
The balance sheet strengthened during the first half of 2026, supported by a sharp increase in cash, lower financial liabilities, and higher retained earnings.
- Total assets rose by 9.62% to N6.62 trillion at June 2026 from N6.04 trillion at December 2025. The increase was driven mainly by current assets, which grew by 25.00% to N2.47 trillion, while non-current assets rose modestly by 2.16% to N4.16 trillion.
- On the liabilities side, total financial liabilities declined to N646.17 billion from N1.16 trillion.
- Current financial liabilities fell by 55.66% to N354.59 billion, while non-current financial liabilities declined by 18.96% to N291.58 billion.
This indicates a significant reduction in the group’s debt burden during the period.
Market reaction
Dangote Cement closed at N1,034.00 per share on Wednesday, July 29, 2026, unchanged on the day, based on the reported 0.00% last-trading-day movement.
The stock has gained 69.79% year-to-date, rising from N609.00 at the beginning of 2026 to ₦1,034.00. Month-to-date, the share price is up 7.37%, compared with its June 2026 closing price of N963.00.
The share price remains below its 52-week high of N1,189.00, trading about 13.04% below that level.
