18-03-2025
MC4 to deliver better results on higher production capacity, exports: CEO
Khalid Al-Maktary, CEO of Fourth Milling Co. (MC4) expects the company to witness sustainable organic growth during the first quarter of 2025, particularly through its "Foam" brand.
The approval of the General Authority for Food Security for the company to increase flour production capacity and export its products will likely have a significant positive impact on its financial performance in the coming period, he added, in an interview with Argaam.
The top executive also said that the focus will remain on seizing key opportunities to meet growing consumer demand and spur its overall operational performance.
'The company is focusing on enhancing sales of high-margin products, such as consumer packages, value-added flour, and animal feed, which have witnessed rapid growth. It is also seeking to expand its sales operations by widening its customer base and expanding its presence across various sales channels,' said the CEO.
MCC4 is also working to improve its operations, lower operating costs, and optimize the use of its assets and resources, with the aim of achieving operational excellence. It will also continue to launch new products with high profit margins, thus boosting its market share, he added.
Additionally, as part of its leadership and efforts to achieve sustainable growth, MC4 focuses its strategy on increasing production and distribution, expanding its portfolio of leading products, improving their quality, and enhancing operational efficiency.
Accordingly, its investments in infrastructure and operational processes will enable it to meet the growing demand for high-quality flour and animal feed products. The company's presence is strong enough to serve 80% of the Kingdom's population.
As for financial results, the company has posted remarkable growth in net profit, by nearly 20% YoY in Q4 and the entire fiscal year. Net profit rose from SAR 35.2 million in Q4 2023 to SAR 42 million in Q4 2024, while full-year net profit increased from SAR 143 million in 2023 to SAR 171 million in 2024. This rise in profit is primarily due to the surge in revenue and improved operational and production efficiency, which in turn contributed to improved profit margins.
The company's revenues grew by 13% in Q4 2024 and the entire FY 2024, with total annual revenues reaching record levels of SAR 629 million, the highest revenue ever recorded, Al-Maktary noted.
This growth was driven by strong performance across the company's main business categories, particularly within the flour, feed, and bran, reflecting the successful implementation of strategic initiatives, he added.
The various flour categories witnessed a 15% growth in Q4 2024, while the feed and bran product categories saw a 12% YoY increase, thus leading to an impressive 16% growth in sales volume. This came thanks to the company's geographic expansion and increased coverage. Furthermore, the "Foam" brand now has a sales share of nearly 30% in the consumer packaging division, according to the CEO.
As for the impact of the geographic expansion, Al-Maktary indicated that the company's strategic presence in rapidly growing regions such as Dammam, Madinah, and Al Kharj led to an exceptional competitive advantage and enabled its ability to provide highly efficient services across the Kingdom.
The company's distribution network facilitates operational processes and seamless product delivery to customers, resulting in cost savings and improved profit margins, as evident in the company's exceptional performance during the past quarter, he further said.
Regarding production capacity in Q4 2024, the CEO stated that MC4 currently operates six production lines with a total production capacity of 3,150 metric tons per day, which means an annual production capacity of about 1 million tons of flour, with an operating rate of 88%.
He explained that the company recently obtained approval from the General Authority for Food Security to increase its production capacity by 11.67% by extending the number of working days from 300 to 335 days, thus enabling a production capacity of 1.06 million metric tons per year and increased production of finished goods.
The company has obtained the go-ahead to export flour products to regional and international markets, said the top executive, adding that talks with potential export partners are in advanced stages.
Furthermore, MC4 aims to explore promising opportunities in new markets, he stated.
The CEO also emphasized that the company's development strategy includes enhancing its sales mix to include products both subject to government regulation and unregulated ones.
