Egypt's SODIC Swings to 2011 Net Loss

Egypt's SODIC Swings to 2011 Net Loss

Shares slump 4 pct; Company reports progress on land bank issues; Says cash position is healthy

April 18, 2012 9:08 by kippreport

Egyptian real estate developer SODIC said on Tuesday it made a net loss last year, when the industry was thrown into turmoil by legal challenges to state land sales and a mass uprising.

However, the country’s third-biggest listed developer painted a more upbeat picture for 2012.

SODIC reported a loss of 193 million Egyptian pounds ($32 million) for 2011 after making a profit of 135 million pounds a year earlier, it said in a statement published by the stock exchange.

Its shares fell 4 percent on the Egyptian Exchange, outpacing a 1.2 percent drop by the benchmark EGX30 index.

Analysts say they are focusing less on the results of Egyptian property firms than on their balance sheets and their progress rolling out projects and securing pre-sales given the economy is still suffering from last year’s uprising and that doubts linger about the sanctity of some industry contracts.

“During a tough 2011 SODIC preserved the strength of its balance sheet, improved cash collection delinquency rates, increased receivables and maintained healthy levels of cash on hand,” the company said in a statement.

It said it had several projects lined up for launch and had made progress on issues surrounding its land bank, securing a development plan from the government for a key housing project.

A successful launch of its Westown Residences project in Cairo, designed since the uprising that ousted President Hosni Mubarak last year, had given the company a base for a strong first quarter of 2012, it said.

“SODIC has achieved 711 million pounds of net new contracted sales for Q1 2012, selling out all projects launched post-revolution,” it said.

The company said this month a court ruling that fined and sentenced its former chairman to prison over corruption charges would have no impact on its shareholders or its assets.

($1 = 6.0387 Egyptian pounds)

(Reporting by Tom Pfeiffer and Ehab Farouk; Editing by David Hulmes)