BD Thai Food & Beverage has performed poorly since its listing in January 2022, with its profit plunging to rock bottom in FY24, thanks to an "unusual" loss in the final quarter.
It reported a profit of Tk 38.88 million for the nine months through March this year, while the annual profit fell to a mere Tk 1.63 million by the end of FY24.
That means the company made a loss of more than Tk 37 million in the April-June quarter this year.
It, however, did not give any explanation in its earnings note as to why it suffered such a big loss in the final quarter.
Its earnings per share (EPS) plunged to Tk 0.02 for FY24 from Tk 0.17 the year before, according to a stock exchange filing on Wednesday.
As the profit declined, the board of directors declared a 1 percent cash dividend only for general shareholders as the final cash dividend for FY24, which was paid as interim dividend in April this year.
Following the news, the stock price of BD Thai Food eroded by about 6 per cent to Tk 15.9 per share on the Dhaka Stock Exchange on Wednesday.
A company official requesting anonymity said they could not generate expected revenue and profit as they had failed to utilize the initial public offering (IPO) fund for business expansion within the stipulated time.
"We could not import some machines timely due to the dollar crunch," he added.
Moreover, the fund allocated for purchasing new equipment in the IPO prospectus was not enough as inflation pushed up prices.
At the same time, increased production costs and higher finance costs amid rising interest rates negatively impacted the company's profitability.
BD Thai Food raised Tk 150 million in December 2021, floating an IPO for business expansion. The IPO proceeds were supposed to be fully utilised within 24 months after the fund was received.
The company was able to spend 73 per cent of the fund, equivalent to about Tk 110 million, as of January this year.
Having failed to import machines for the dollar crisis, the company in May this year sought a 12-month extension for full fund utilization.
As per the IPO prospectus, Tk 94.20 million was meant for machinery & equipment, Tk 31.77 million for building & civil works, Tk 13.03 million for land & land development, and the remaining Tk 11 million for IPO expenses.
Company secretary Md Habubur Rahman claimed recently that the company had imported some machinery and utilized the full IPO proceeds.
He said the energy-efficient machines would cut production costs, which would have a positive impact on the financials in the coming quarters.
Since 2013, the company has been processing different kinds of beverage & confectionary items.
BD Thai Food operates in the industry segment heavily dominated by Pran, Square Food & Beverage, Danish Foods, Bashundhara, Meghna Group, and Olympic Industries.
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