Centum Investment Company has become a debt-free holding company after completing a multi-year balance sheet restructuring programme that began in 2020, offering room for higher dividends to shareholders.
The firm’s latest disclosures show it closed the financial year ended March 2026 without any debt, compared with Sh690 million borrowing it had in the previous year and Sh1.95 billion in 2024. The company’s debt stood at Sh7.48 billion in 2020 and Sh16.14 billion in 2019.
However, at the group level, the borrowing reduced to Sh17.08 billion from Sh17.85 billion, showing that some of its subsidiaries and associate firms still carry credit facilities in their books.
Centum CEO James Mworia said the full repayment of debt at the holding company level provides the company with “considerable financial flexibility” to enhance returns to shareholders while increasing investments.
“The balance sheet restructuring programme that commenced in 2020 has now been successfully completed. Management’s focus now shifts towards accelerating cash generation, expanding recurring annuity income, recycling capital efficiently across the portfolio and progressively enhancing shareholder returns,” said Mr Mworia.
At a group level, Centum announced an 8.4 percent decline in net profit to Sh743.91 million from Sh812.81 million posted in the previous financial year. However, net profit rose 87 percent to Sh1.02 billion from Sh547.13 million at a company level.
The firm explained that consolidated earnings include businesses at different stages of their investment lifecycle and may not always match with cash distributions received by the holding company, leading to the difference in bottom lines at company and group level.
The dividend is made up of an ordinary payout of Sh0.42 per share amounting to Sh281 million and a special distribution of Sh0.36 per share totalling Sh240 million.
The proposed distribution, subject to approval at the upcoming annual general meeting, is 2.5 times higher than the distribution made in the previous year when it paid an ordinary dividend of Sh0.32 per share amounting to Sh210 million.
“The special dividend reflects the successful realisation into cash of value created across the portfolio over a number of years. Centum frequently recognises increases in value through fair value movements before those gains are ultimately realised through strategic transactions or investment exits,” said Mr Mworia.
