Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man, gains $100 million as investors prepare for Q1 earnings

Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man and leading industrialist, saw his net worth rise by $100 million in a single day as investors on the Nigerian stock exchange renewed their interest in stocks with strong fundamentals as the first-quarter earnings season began.

Dangote, Africa’s richest person, controls Dangote Industries, a closely held well-diversified manufacturing conglomerate that owns Dangote Cement Plc, Sub-Saharan Africa’s largest cement producer, and Dangote Sugar Refinery, Nigeria’s leading integrated sugar group.

The multimillion-dollar surge in Dangote’s net worth can be attributed to a single-digit percentage increase in the market value of his stake in his cement and sugar businesses – Dangote Cement and Dangote Sugar Refinery – as investors bought more shares in the companies.

According to data obtained from the Nigerian Exchange, the market value of his cement company, which contributes $9.65 billion to his net worth, increased by 2.56 percent on Tuesday, while shares in his sugar business increased by 6.45 percent due to investor buying interest.

As a result of the uptick in the market value of his stake, his net worth increased by $100 million from $19.9 billion at the start of business yesterday to $20 billion at the opening of business today.

The wealth gains solidify his position as not only Africa’s richest man but also the world’s richest Black man. The recent increase in his net worth comes as investors on the Nigerian Exchange align their interest in stocks with strong fundamentals as the earnings season begins.

At the end of 2021, Dangote’s cement business posted a 33-percent increase in profit, from N276.06 billion ($663.5 million) in 2020 to N364.4 billion ($875.9 million), attributable to impressive top-line growth and the management’s sound cost-cutting strategies.

The robust growth in earnings was triggered by a 33.8-percent increase in revenue from N1.03 trillion ($2.47 billion) to N1.38 trillion ($3.31 billion), driven by an increase in sales from 25.72 million tonnes to 29.27 million tonnes and pricing gains from the surge in the price of cement.

Market participants anticipate that the leading cement company will increase its profit margins as it continues to capitalize on gains from sustained growth in real estate investments, as well as an increase in government infrastructure spending.