Maple Leaf Cement Factory on course for higher FY13 profit

Pakistan cement producer Maple Leaf Cement Factory, is on course to record its most highest profit in six years on the back of higher cement prices and lower interest rates to reduce loan payments.

According to reports by Businessweek, earnings per share may rise to about PKR3 in the year ending June 2013, according to Waleed Tariq Saigol, a member of the company’s board of directors. EPS in the previous 12 months was PKR0.84.

Maple Leaf plans to reduce its debt to PKR13bn (US$135m) in the year ending June, from the PKR16bn it owes to banks for expansion since 2005, Saigol said. Lower interest rates have helped reduce financial charges after the central bank reduced borrowing costs for a second meeting last month.

“This year is going to be a good one for Maple,” said Sateesh Balani, a research analyst at Elixir told Businessweek. “Even a modest capacity utilisation level of 70 per cent will help the company make good earnings on the back of strong cement prices.”

Maple Leaf Cement Factory has a 3.37Mta integrated cement plant in Daudkhel, Punjab. In 2011, the company produced 2.84Mt of cement as compared to 3.34Mt during the year before.