Shareholders of Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO) Plc have earned nearly three times as much as average investors in the Nigerian equities market.
This bullish run has been largely underpinned by strong operational fundamentals. The audited report and accounts of NAHCO for the year ended December 31, 2025, showed that profit before tax jumped by 30 per cent to N24.256 billion in 2025 as against N18.702 billion in 2024.
Net profit grew by 39.91 per cent from N12.865 billion in 2024 to N17.999 billion in 2025. Earnings per share rose by 40 per cent from N6.60 in 2024 to N9.24 in 2025.
This is as total revenue rose by 21.8 percent from N53.54 billion in 2024 to N65.21 billion in 2025. Gross profit increased from N33.08 billion to N38.61 billion. Operating profit rose by 25 per cent from N19.84 billion in 2024 to N24.84 billion in 2025.
A trading report at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) showed that NAHCO’s shares have remained one of the best performers of the stock market on the back of the release of the latest audited report and accounts of West Africa’s leading aviation handling and logistics group.
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The results showed a sustained positive trajectory, with remarkable growth across key performance indicators.
The All Share Index (ASI) of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) opened this week with an average year-to-date return of 45.05 per cent, the second-highest return globally.
NAHCO was one of the major drivers of the top-chart return at the NGX, with the company recording an average year-to-date return of 124.07 percent.
The report showed that NAHCO’s return was more than three times the 35.06 percent average return on the main board of the market, where the company is listed, and nearly three times the average return of the market’s 30 largest companies.
This indicated that investors in NAHCO have, in barely four months, seen more than a double in the value of their shareholdings.
For instance, an investor with a market value of N100,000 at the beginning of this year now has some N224,070, and another with N1 million portfolio value now has about N2.241 million. This places NAHCO among the best-performing stocks in nominal terms and when adjusted for inflation and cost of capital.
The continuing bullish performance highlighted investors’ perception of NAHCO. NAHCO’s share price had doubled from N46.05 in 2024 to N108 per share in 2025.
Market analysts pointed out that stocks like NAHCO underscore the inclusive wealth-creation potential of the capital market, providing investors across the entire strata, from large, high-net-worth institutional investors to individual and retail investors, with reliable preservation and growth.
Analysts noted that with a free float of 56.68 percent, which indicates that more than half of NAHCO’s shares are in the hands of the general investing public, NAHCO’s performance directly and indirectly contributes to the nation’s wealth distribution and well-being.
Minority individual retail investors account for more than one-third of transactions at the Nigerian equities market, underlining the significant relationship between the market and the ordinary Nigerians.
More than 1.1 billion ordinary shares of NAHCO are in the hands of individual retail investors, one of the largest inclusive spreads among quoted companies. The large free float also makes NAHCO’s share pricing trend most reflective of the general investors’ sentiment, as the extent of free float has a subtle influence on the price discovery of a stock.
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Balance sheet expands, ratios rise markedly
Besides, the group’s balance sheet also emerged stronger, with total assets increasing from N46.95 billion in 2024 to N53.88 billion in 2025. Shareholders’ funds rose by 32 per cent from N20.075 billion to N26.497 billion.
Financial ratios generally indicated that the company’s performance was driven by steady market growth and disciplined cost management, despite the inflationary operating environment.
Operating profit margin improved from 37.06 per cent in 2024 to 38.09 per cent in 2025. Pre-tax profit margin increased from 34.93 per cent to 37.2 per cent. Return on total assets improved by more than five percentage points from 39.83 per cent to 45.02 per cent.
With its strong fundamentals, the Seinde Fadeni-led board of NAHCO has recommended the distribution of a combined dividend of cash and bonus shares to shareholders of the company, sustaining a tradition that has seen the leading aviation handling and logistics group as one of the highest and most consistent dividend-paying companies in Nigeria.
The board of directors of NAHCO has recommended payment of an increased cash dividend of N12.18 billion for the 2025 business year as against N11.58 billion paid for the 2024 business year. Shareholders will receive a dividend per share of N6.25 for the 2025 business year, compared with N5.94 paid for the previous year.
The board has also recommended a bonus issue of one ordinary share of 50 kobo each for every seven ordinary shares held, automatically increasing the number of shares held by each shareholder by 14.3 per cent. This means that a shareholder currently with 1,000 shares will receive additional bonus shares of about 143 shares, increasing total shareholding to 1,143 shares.
Read also: NAHCO secures chain of contracts with global, local airline giants
The qualification date for the cash and scrip dividends is Friday, May 1, 2026, while the cash dividends will be directly credited to shareholders’ bank accounts on Friday, May 15, 2026, after approval at the company’s annual general meeting.
Seinde Fadeni, the chairman of the company, has consistently demonstrated its commitment to value creation for shareholders and all its stakeholders, as shown in its growth trend.
“Our operational excellence continues to show in every financial result. In 2025, NAHCO recorded impressive growth across key performance indicators, combining a strong push for market share with disciplined cost management. The resultant effect is double-digit growth in revenues and profitability,” he said.
He pointed out that the continuing impressive performance means that the company can sustain its track record of remarkable dividend payment every year, noting that despite a 134 percent increase in dividend per share for the 2024 business year, the group’s dividend cover improved to 1.56 times in 2025, as against 1.11 times in 2024, underlining the significant headroom for the group to continue its impressive dividend payment record.