The board of KIDO Foods revealed that the company, in October, will have adhered to all basic conditions to have its shares listed on HOSE. A leader of KIDO Foods stressed that the transfer will be completed in 2018 or early 2019.

Some investors stated that the company’s shares on UPCoM are priced below VND40,000 each, lower than it was first traded on the exchange, while the leader noted that the number of freely circulated shares accounted for 30% of the capital, equivalent to 16 million shares. The leader added that the shares are expected to appear on HOSE to enhance liquidity and push up share prices in the near future.

At the meeting, the board presented a 2018 business plan targeting net sales of VND1.7 trillion and pre-tax profit of VND195 billion, rising by 13% and 11.9%, respectively, compared with the 2017 performance. KIDO Foods is expected to pay a 14% cash dividend, or VND1,400 per share.

With the advantage of distributing products to 70,000 frozen-product retail outlets and stores, the leader confirmed that the company will develop and diversify its product line, including ice-creams, frozen food and food staples. The ice-cream sector is forecast to grow higher than the average level of the industry in 2018.

The frozen product group will add dumplings and bologna to the mix, while the company plans to research and develop drinks such as corn milk.

Besides this, the ice-cream sector will undergo a compound growth rate of 7% in the 2017-2022 period, as forecast, achieving some VND3.5 trillion in 2019. KIDO Foods anticipates deep penetration in the sector, given statistics indicating Vietnam’s ice-cream consumption remains low, at just one fourth of Malaysia’s and half of Thailand's.

KIDO Foods is Vietnam’s largest ice-cream maker, with its market share rising from 38.1% in 2016 to 40.2% in 2017, according to Euromonitor International. The company's ice-cream segment grew by 15.7%, higher than the industry’s average growth rate of 14.7%.

KIDO Foods recorded net sales of VND1,493 billion in 2017, up 6.9% against that of 2016, and pre-tax profit of VND174 billion and after-tax profit of VND152 billion, growing by 6.7% compared with 2016.
Source: thesaigontimes.vn