Karachi: Lucky Cement announced robust financial results for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2026, reporting a profit attributable to equity owners of Rs25.35 billion, which translates to an earnings per share (EPS) of Rs17.31. This marks a 29% increase compared to the same period last year, aligning with market expectations.
According to JS Global, the company's standalone profitability rose to Rs9.89 billion in 4QFY26, a 72% year-on-year increase, although it declined by 27% quarter-on-quarter. For the entire fiscal year, the standalone profit reached Rs46.62 billion, a 41% increase from the previous year. Consolidated net revenue increased by 19% year-on-year and 7% quarter-on-quarter to Rs139.0 billion for the fourth quarter, bringing the full fiscal year 2026 revenue to Rs516.3 billion, up 15% from FY25. This growth is attributed to higher total dispatches and increased sales at Lucky Motor Corporation.
The company's gross margins on a consolidated basis improved to 27.1% in the fourth quarter, up from 24.2% in the same quarter last year and 23.6% in the third quarter of FY26. However, on an annual basis, gross margins declined to 25% in FY26 from 27.3% in FY25. The share of profit from associates fell by 28% year-on-year but saw a 28% increase quarter-on-quarter, resulting in Rs3.48 billion for the fourth quarter and Rs16.75 billion for FY26, a 6% decrease year-on-year.
Finance costs for the company decreased by 10% year-on-year to Rs4.7 billion in 4QFY26, attributed to lower debt levels, totaling Rs18.9 billion for FY26, down 26% from the prior year. The consolidated effective tax rate for the quarter stood at 14.5%, down from 20.0% in the same quarter last year, while the unconsolidated effective tax rate was 23.3% compared to 36.1% in 4QFY25.
Alongside the earnings announcement, Lucky Cement declared a dividend of Rs5.0 per share for the fourth quarter. The company also revealed an equity investment of Rs1.2 billion in National Resources Limited, representing a 33% stake. Furthermore, the cement production capacity has been increased to 15.6 million tons following a 300,000-ton capacity optimization upgrade at its Karachi plant. JS Global maintains a Buy stance on Lucky Cement, which is currently trading at a projected price-to-earnings ratio of 6.4x for FY27.