Shareholders of DN Meyer endorse planned N220m capital raise, name change

Shareholders of DN Meyer Plc have approved the company’s plan to raise additional capital of N220 million by way of rights issue.They also endorsed the firm’ arrangement to change its name to Meyer Plc in order to reflect the core ownership of the company.

Giving the approvals during the 44th yearly general meeting of the company, held in Lagos at the weekend, the stakeholders urged the management to ensure prudent use of the fund in order to boost its bottomline and increase profitability.

Specifically, the President, Nigerian Shareholders Solidarity Association, Timothy Adesiyan commended the company on its on going restructuring exercise.
He also applauded the management for reducing the firm’s loan profile, which has impacted on its financial charges.

Adesiyan urged shareholders to leverage the company’s rights issue and increase their holdings in the company.The President, Greenwich Shareholders Association, Adebayo Williams urged the management to deploy the fund to areas of business where they are currently making profits.

He also advised them to create a team that would carry out an evaluation on the expenses the company would incur during the exercise.The Chairman of the company, Kayode, Falowo explained that the fund would be used to finance the upgrade of the company’s factory, develop the in-factory tinting center, enhance its brand and market presence as well as boost the firm’s working capital.

According to him, its profitability received a boost during the year under review with an engagement of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) to restructure the company’s existing loan with the corporation.

Following the engagement, the Chairman explained that the company obtained interest waivers on the loan, which accounted for a reduction in its net finance cost from N121.5 million in 2014 to N92.9 million in 2015.

He pointed out that the company did not incur fresh debt during the year under review, adding that all the company’s operating activities were financed with internally generated funds.

“In view of the opportunities we see in our business and in order to enhance our capacity to compete for market share, we are in the process of raising fresh equity capital by way of rights issue.

“This approach is preferred as it enables existing shareholders to participate in the exercise to retain their shareholding in the company and benefit from its future growth and profitability.”

Falowo added that the company recorded a turnover of N1.19 billion, against N1.34 billion achieved during the corresponding period in 2014 while profit before interest and tax stood at N151.01 million compared to N72 million posted in 2014.