Centum’s first-half pretax profit trebles

Kenya’s Centum Investment Company Plc said on Thursday its first-half pretax profit trebled to 7.72 billion shillings ($76.06 million), boosted by higher income from its private equity and investment businesses.

Its private equity arm posted an operating profit of 8.4 billion shillings, compared with 1.8 billion shillings a year ago, helped by stake sales in two drinks companies — Almasi Beverages and Nairobi Bottlers.

Centum, which invests in both listed and non-listed companies, said its investment and other income shot up to 12.4 billion shillings in the six months to September from 4.05 billion shillings a year earlier.

The company had recorded a pretax profit of 2.56 billion shilling in the first half of the previous financial year.