Saudi strategic investment holding firm Savola Group posted a net profit of SR874.5 million ($232 million) in 2025, 91.23 percent down compared to the previous year.
According to a statement on the Saudi Exchange, the decline was mostly caused by various non-recurring items that were reported in 2024, along with variations in performance by the segments.
The filing indicated that the decrease in net profit was significantly attributable to the lack of one-off gain in 2024 on the distribution of Savola Group’s 34.52 percent of the stakes in Almarai Co. to eligible shareholders for SR11.3 billion after deduction of SR288 million zakat.
It also influenced earnings as a reduced contribution of associates followed the lack of profitability of the earlier distributed Almarai investment, which had contributed SR782 million in 2024.
The statement mentioned that the profit in the retail segment declined to SR115 million compared to SR154 million, primarily because of the increased operating costs associated with the opening of new stores and sustained investments in the CXR program.
The reduction was also explained by the fact that there was no one-off Segment of SR16 million reversal of the provision on aged receivables as in 2024.
However, the operating expenses also surged in 2025 due to the consolidation of United Sugar Co. of Egypt, which had been accounted for as an associate in 2024.
Savola, which operates with high exposure in the food and retail businesses in the Middle East and North Africa, also declared the recommendation of the board to pay cash dividends of SR510 million as of 2025.
In another filing, it was indicated that there was a total of 300 million shares, which were liable to dividends with a dividend of SR1.7 per share. The statement further stipulated that dividends constitute 17 percent of the share’s par value.
The Tadawul statement added, “These distributions are in line with the Group’s announced dividends policy, which is to distribute cash dividends of approximately 50 percent to 60 percent of the net profit generated during the fiscal year.”
In the trading session of the day, Savola increased its share by approximately 9.2 percent in the Tadawul All Share Index, reaching SR23.93, following the announcement by the company that it made more than average market expectations in terms of its fourth-quarter profit.
