Centum Issued A Profit Warning As Second Wave Bites

Investment firm Centum has issued a profit warning for the financial year ending March 31, 2021. The company says its earnings would be at least 25 percent lower than the net profit recorded the previous year.

“Our private equity business segment holds investments in various sectors, some of which were significantly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic especially in the first half of the financial year,” said the firm in a statement by Mwangi Mbogo.

Centum attributed the expected decline to the absence of gains on disposal for the year compared to the previous financial year when they registered KSh12.5 billion gains on disposal of investments.

Centum Real Estate’s properties currently under construction within the Two Rivers Residential District are Loft Residences, Riverbank Apartments, and Cascadia Apartments, in addition, to its mixed-use developments in Vipingo, Kilifi, and Entebbe in Uganda.

Other developments in Nairobi include the 365 Pavilion Place Apartments in Ruaraka and the 265 Elmer One in Kasarani, both falling under the affordable node program.

The cumulative pre-sales represent 1,322 units out of a total of 3,093 houses either under construction or market-validation.

“Centum completed land sales in this financial year and booked approximately KSh2 billion in revenue at a significant value uplift,” said the company.

Read More:

• Centum To Use Ksh 7 Billion To Construct 268 Units In Kasarani
• Standard Chartered Bank Issues A Profit Warning

In September last year,

Centum Investment announced to invest 7.0 billion shillings to develop a new affordable housing project in Kasarani, Nairobi. The project is set to consist of  268 units, comprising studio apartments, 1 bedroom, 1 bedroom loft, and 2 bedroom apartments of 20 sqm, 40 sqm, 40 sqm, and 60 sqm, respectively. The selling prices of the units will begin at 1.9 million shillings.

“The tastefully designed houses are ideal and affordable for first-time homebuyers as well as those who want to invest in real estate without necessarily going through the hassle of getting involved in land buying and construction,” said Centum Real Estate.