Barloworld profits surge by 50%

File photo: Simphiwe Mbokazi

File photo: Simphiwe Mbokazi

Published May 20, 2013

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Johannesburg - Barloworld Ltd., the distributor of Caterpillar Inc.'s construction products in South Africa, said first-half profit advanced 50 percent as newly-acquired Bucyrus boosted sales in the equipment division.

Net income attributable to shareholders rose to R643 million for the six months through March, compared with 429 million rand a year earlier, the Johannesburg-based company said in a statement today. Revenue advanced 11 percent to 31.3 billion rand. The interim dividend was increased 20 percent to 96 cents.

Barloworld, which earns 71 percent of its revenue in southern Africa, is a supplier of equipment to miner BHP Billiton Plc and oil and gas company Sasol Ltd. The company acquired Bucyrus Inc. from Caterpillar and Eqstra Mining Services for $175 million in July.

"Within our equipment division the newly acquired Bucyrus businesses performed in line with expectation and offset revenue declines in the traditional Caterpillar business on the back of a slowdown in mining capital expenditure," the company said.

Barloworld shares fell 1 percent to R95 on May 17, valuing the company at R22 billion. The stock has gained 8.6 percent this year, outperforming the 166-member FTSE/JSE Africa All Share Index, which advanced 5.5 percent. - Bloomberg

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