Malawi Stock Exchange-listed conglomerate, Press Corporation Limited (PCL) plc, has said it is intensifying efforts and working towards expanding its existing businesses portfolio through mergers and acquisition.
PCL plc Board Chairperson Radson Mwadiwa said this on Friday at the group’s 39th annual general meeting in Blantyre.
This comes as the company posted a 19 percent drop in post-tax profit in the year ended December 31 2022 to K36.3 billion from K45.1 billion in the prior year.
Apart from volatility of the economy during the year under review, the group saw subdued performance in some of its subsidiaries including in the telecommunication segment where both TNM and MTL reported losses.
But its resilient performance was derived from a strong performance in investments in financial services and energy where listed National Bank of Malawi posted a 40 percent increase in its profit-after-tax to K46.6 billion from 33.4 billion in 2021.
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Addressing the shareholders, Mwadiwa said the group’s strategy is centred on optimising existing assets and investing in capacity for the future.
“It is with this in mind that the group envisages organic growth through expansion projects in the ethanol business to projects in the renewable energy space as well as in processing and manufacturing sectors.
“The group is also on an expansion strategy, through the mergers and acquisition route, and has a number of projects in the pipeline at various stages,” Mwadiwa said.
Minority Shareholders Association of Listed Companies Secretary General Frank Harawa said the outlook remains positive for the company amid challenges faced.
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He said the conglomerate remains a competitive listed firm with the highest share price on the market and a good dividend payout of K29 per share for 2022.
“We are seeing progress in the company. We believe that there is a future in this company,” Harawa said.
