Back to 'normal' growth? Saudi foodservice company Herfy posts higher year-on-year first-quarter profit

Saudi foodservice company Herfy posted a 1.46% year-on-year growth in net profit for its first-quarter, signalling a return to "normal" pre-pandemic growth.

The company reported in a bourse filing on Wednesday (April 7) 25.5 million riyals ($6.8 million) in net profit for January through March compared to 25.13 million riyals for the same quarter in 2020.

The first three months of 2020 were just before Saudi authorities imposed COVID-19 restrictions. Herfy and the foodservice sector were, from the second quarter, hit by closure of  dine-in eateries in commercial centres and the limitation of service in others. The company went on to report a 73% year-on-year drop in its full-year 2020 profit.

Herfy's first-quarter 2021 revenue increased by 4.4% to 310.1 million riyals compared to 292.93 million riyals for the same period last year.

The company attributes this growth to an uptick in sales and lower finance costs despite higher expenditures on selling and marketing.

Herfy operates its fast food restaurants as well as bakeries. It also has a meat processing business line.

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