Woodcats International Ltd posted a 13.7 per cent decline in profit before tax for the three months ended March, marking the wood products manufacturer’s first earnings report since listing on the Jamaica Stock Exchange Junior Market in March.
“Demand for our products from manufacturers and other key customers declined,” stated the company executives in the preface to its financials.
It was due to the “trailing impact of Hurricane Melissa” which struck the island last October, and also sales seasonality. Woodcats, which operates from Slipe Pen Road, Kingston, manufactures and sells wooden products, including pallets and mulch. Parent company Derrimon Trading Company Limited retains a 49.4 per cent stake.
Profit before taxation fell to $19 million from $22.1 million in the comparable period a year earlier, as revenue slipped 5.3 per cent to $241.9 million from $255.3 million.
“Whilst the first two months of the quarter were below projections, demand started to normalise in March,” the board said in its report.
The company managed to partly offset the revenue pressure through tighter cost management and a shift towards higher-margin products. Gross profit improved 6.1 per cent to $92.7 million, pushing the gross margin to 38.3 per cent from 34.2 per cent a year earlier.
Administrative expenses rose 7.8 per cent, however, weighed down by one-time costs tied to the company’s initial public offering. Excluding those costs, expenses were flat on a comparative basis, the management said.
Woodcats listed on the JSE Junior Market in March, becoming the first company to list on the exchange in 2026 and the first under a new $750-million share capital threshold. The initial public offering, arranged by NCB Capital Markets Limited, was oversubscribed by 22.5 per cent, drawing some 8,070 shareholders. The company raised $364.3 million in net proceeds, which boosted its cash balance to $295 million and lifted shareholders’ equity by 82.9 per cent to $1.02 billion.
Looking ahead, the company flagged rising fuel and freight costs as a near-term margin risk, given its reliance on imported inputs. It is installing new machinery as part of a “waste to revenue” initiative and is in discussions with prospective customers in the Eastern Caribbean to grow its export business. Management said it had introduced a new product line in the quarter and was modernising its main plant to broaden its product and customer base.
business@gleanerjm.com
