Weak Revenue, Cost  Plunge Tantalizers’Loss to N264.09m

Kayode Tokede

Tantalizers Plc suffered worst performance for so many years in its audited financial statement for the period ended December 31, 2022 amid slow revenue and cost pressure.

The company reported N241.79million loss before tax in 2022 as against loss before tax of N199.87million reported in 2021, while loss after tax dive to N264.09million in 2022 from N214.82million loss after tax reported in 2021.

Despite losses, Tantalizers in 2022 financial year disclosed that it paid N22.3million tax expenses from N14.95million reported in 2021.

Tantalizers, which returned to profitability in 2017 after being in the red, slipped back to loss position in the first quarter (Q1) of year 2018 ended March 31and has remained in the red till date.

While some listed companies on the trading floor of the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) were able to successfully weather the storm, the company in the hospitality business remained under cost pressures on many fronts as the company struggles with high financial leverage and weaken revenue.

While the turnover witnessed low growth and the company held tightly to operating expenses, finance expenses have also continued to weaken the bottom-line as it has remained susceptible to the challenges facing the hospitality industry in Nigeria.

Made worse is infrastructure deficiency, which has inevitably transferred the high production cost to consumers and has resulted to low patronage, thereby shrinking the operators’ profit margins.

In competition with the likes of Sweet Sensation, Mega Chicken, Chicken Republic, among others, Tantalizers in 2022 reported N2.43billion revenue, a drop of 12.03per cent from N2.76billion in 2021.

The breakdown of revenue showed N1.16billion company-owned outlet sales in 2022 from N1.27nillion in 2021, while franchisees—owned outlet sales dropped to N1.26billion in 2022 from N1.49billion reported in 2021. 

Tantalizers, like any other fast-food firm in Nigeria, is currently facing challenges due to the harsh operating environment. This is because the economy generally is faced with enormous socioeconomic challenges.

The company’s activities have been negatively impacted, majorly by increase in tariff, double taxation, depreciation in naira and the continued insecurity prevailing in some parts of the country, a situation that has compelled a scaling back of its expansion drive in those regions.

The effect of challenges in operating environment on the economy continued to impact adversely on its operations due to reduction in credit opportunities, increase in cost of sales and administrative expenses, which in turn affected the company’s income.

When the market closed last Friday, the company’s share price remained at N0.20 kobo.

Operating cost, writebacks contributing to losses in 2022

Tantalizers’s cost of sales stood at N748.18 million in 2022 from N761.7 million in 2021 to positioned the company gross profit at N415.6million in 2022 from N508.58million in 2021.

The company reported N478.5million in non-core business income in 2022 from N354.97million in 2021, driven by N323.9million income from disposal of property, plant and equipment from N178.15million reported in 2021.

As distribution costs stood at N38.15million in 2022 from N9.55million in 2021, administrative expenses dropped to N902.14million in 2022 from N941.9million in 2021.

The company disclosed that it spent N60.09million in advertising/promotion in 2022 from N34.99million in 2021.

In the year under review, Tantalizers reported N121.4million write backs as against N20.8million write off reported in 2021. In all, Tantalizer reported N940.29million total operating expenses in 2022 as against N951.42million reported in 2021.

This brings its operating loss to N167.6million in 2022 from N132.77million in 2021.

Finance cost dropped to N4.2million in 2022 from N14.32million as finance costs moved from N81.42million in 2021 to N78.4million in 2021 over N72.4million interest on term loans in 2022 from N73.42million in 2021.

In all, it closed the year under review with – N0.08 Earning Per Share in 2022 from -N0.07 in 2021. 

Deficit in retained earnings

Tantalizers in 2022 financial year reported a growing deficit in retained earnings on the backdrop of losses reported in the year under review.

The company showed its deficit to N3.96billion in 2022 from N3.7billion in 2021 to eventually bring its shareholders ‘fund at N653.37million in 2022 from N199.85million in 2021. With  the deficit, the company’s shareholders should not be expecting dividend payout anytime soon.

As current liabilities dropped to N1.44billion in 2022 from N1.56billion in 2021, non-current liabilities stood at N449.7million in 2022 from N472.63million reported in 2021.

It brings Tantalizers total liabilities to N1.89billion in 2022 from N2.04billion in 2021.

Tantalizers, thus grew its total assets to N2.55billion in 2022, representing an increase of nearly 14per cent from N2.24billion in 2021.

The breakdown of total assets showed N2.06billion non-current assets in 2022 from N1.55billion in 2021, while current assets dropped to N480.32million in 2022 from N686.08million in 2021.

Conclusion

Tantalizers towards the end of 2022 was in need of capital to enhance its business expansion and compete with other fast-food outlets in the country.

The board of Tantalizers disclosed that the company will be selling a majority stake in the company after

The company resolved to sell 36 per cent of Tantalizers’ existing share capital to private investors.

The stake will be sold by way of Special Placement, with the board given permission to source funds through equity and other financing options in the future for expansion, and debt reduction amongst others.

“The Board of Directors of the Company were authorized to issue by way of Special Placement the 1,788,372,094 unissued ordinary shares of 50 kobo each in the share capital of the Company (being about 36per cent of the Company’s existing share capital) to potential investors, with the newly issued shares ranking pari-passu with the Company’s existing issued shares,” the document reads.

It added that, “The Memorandum and Articles of the Company and all necessary corporate documents be amended upon completion of the Special Placement, to reflect the Company’s share capital.