Richard Pieris records Rs 1.7 b profit in 1H

The Richard Pieris Group ended its first half year on a strong note reporting a growth of 150% in its non plantation sectors.

The six months ended September 30, 2011 evidenced steady growth of the Group's Retail and Plastics Sectors and the Group is well poised to achieve its targets during the year with plans under way for an aggressive expansion of its large format retail outlets and diversification plans into the financial services sector.

The Group recorded a turnover of Rs 7.7 billion and an operating profit of Rs 1.7 billion for the three months ended September 30, 2011. The Turnover for the six months ended September 2010 was Rs 14.9 billion resulting in a Group Operating Profit of Rs 1.7 billion and a profit before tax of Rs 1.4 billion.

During the last 12 months Group Debt levels were around Rs 4.4 billion and despite significant new investment the Group has managed its debt levels without a significant increase and the overall Gearing Ratio which has reduced from 42% to 36% during this period. The Retail Sector continued steady performance with a turnover of Rs 6.4 billion and an operating profit of Rs 821 million during the six months ended September 30, 2011. The turnover of this segment grew by 29% when compared to the previous year with an increase of 138% in the operating profit which includes the capital gain resulting from the Richard Pieris Distributor's investment in (Group's disposal of its associate undertaking) - Asian Alliance Insurance PLC.