Gillanders Gets 1:1 Bonus Nod
Gillanders Arbuthnot & Company Ltd (GACL) has secured shareholders' approval for issuing bonus shares in the ratio 1:1 at an extraordinary general meeting yesterday. The company will draw Rs 2.37 crore from the general reserve for the purpose.
The board of directors of the company has recommended a dividend of 50 per cent for 1997-98 against 30 per cent in the previous year. The company will seek shareholders' approval for this at the forthcoming annual general meeting.
The company achieved net sales of Rs 11.62 crore in the first quarter of the current year against Rs 9.05 crore in the previous quarter. Net profit stood at Rs 2.22 crore against Rs 1.18 crore in the previous quarter. In 1997-98, GACL recorded net sales of Rs 41.77 crore and a net profit of Rs 7.31 crore. Last year the company's total expenditure was about Rs 35.70 crore. In 1996-97, GACL produced 31 lakh kg of tea but the profit from its tea division was lower as prices realised could not offset the increase in input costs.
The contribution of the property division improved during the previous year. The project for manufacture of plastic containers was commissioned in March 1996.
The installed capacity for plastic containers in the country is much more than the demand and, consequently, almost all the plants are working at a very low capacity. Since prices in such a situation fail to be remunerative, the company's plastic container division was affected adversely. But, GACL is taking necessary measures to utilise the capacity of the plant.