Zichis Agro-Allied Spices Up Shareholders' Returns With Dividend Payout And Bonus Shares

As the market awaits the lifting of suspension on the shares of Zichis Agro-Allied Industries Plc, by the Nigerian Exchange Limited, existing and prospective investors are excited by the impressive financial performance and generous shareholder rewards. The company has proposed a 20 kobo dividend per share and a one-for-one bonus issue for shareholders. The performance was primarily driven by strong expansion, as earnings per share witnessed a significant rise, climbing to 55 kobo from 9.45 kobo. This exciting news comes after Zichis reported a pre-tax profit of N364.21 million for the year ended December 31, 2025, representing a 420.8% increase from the previous year. The company's revenue more than doubled to N675.62 million, driven by strong growth in egg sales (N226.7 million) and palm produce (N182.7 million). Despite macroeconomic challenges, Zichis achieved a 134% increase in sales turnover, showcasing its operational discipline and effective cost management. The proposed dividend and bonus issue are subject to shareholder approval at the Annual General Meeting (AGM). The dividend and bonus reward is estimated at N120 million in 2025 financial year, about 300 per cent increase over N30 million in 2024 financial year. The register of shareholders will be closed from March 17 to March 20, 2026. On April 29, 2026, dividends will be paid electronically to shareholders whose names appear on the Register of Members as at March 16, 2026. The cost of sales also increased, reaching N212.81 million from N153.46 million. Egg-related costs accounted for 52.68per cent of this figure. Despite the increase in cost of sales, the company's gross profit rose significantly to N462.8 million from N135.5 million previously reported. Commenting on the company growth plan, the Managing Director, Zichis Agro-allied Industries, Mrs. Anthonia Akabusi stated that the company in 2026 aimed to expand its feedmill , and acquire 2000 acres of land for oil palm plantation in Ogun State. The executive firector, Finance & Strategy, Mr. Chris Ogbaisi explained that the company has commenced its 2026 execution plans. “Zichis feedmilling plant, which is one of our cash cow has been increased to five tonnes per hour and we are estimating 600 tonnes in a monthly basis. We are hoping it is commissioned in the next two weeks in March 2026. “Our layers have increased to 25,000 and by second quarter (Q2) 2026, we plan to increase it to 50,000 layers with a capacity of 80 per cent production. We have increased our feedmilling from two tonnes to five tonnes per hour and 61 acres oil palm plantation operating optimally. We have increased our raw materials and Zichis’s 2000 acres of land for palm plantation expected to drive revenue,” he added. However, as of February, the stock is priced above N17 per share, representing a month-to-date increase of over 314per cent and pushing its year-to-date return beyond 855per cent from its N1.81 listing price. The suspension, effective February 23, 2026, was triggered by an extraordinary 772.36 percent price surge within a month of the company’s listing on the Growth Board. The company was listed on the NGX Growth Board on January 20. The company listed with 1.086 billion shares at N1.81 per share. The share price stood at N17.36 on February 20 before its suspension, rising by 772.36 per cent year-to-date. Zichis listed its 600 million shares by Introduction. Listing by introduction means the company did not issue new shares to the public to raise capital at the time of listing; instead, its existing shares were admitted to the daily official list of the Exchange. Its initial market capitalisation was N1.086billion, but it rose to N10.42billion after one month of listing. Since its debut, the stock has experienced extraordinary volatility. The company is an Ogun State-based integrated agribusiness. Its operations cover several areas of the agricultural value chain, including: Poultry & Fish Farming, Large scale egg production and aquaculture; Oil Palm Plantation management and processing; and Animal Feed Manufacturing and supply via its own feed mills.