RIYADH: Saudi strategic investment holding firm Savola Group reported a net profit of SR874.5 million ($232 million) in 2025, down 91.23 percent from a year earlier, as the absence of one-off gains recorded in 2024 weighed on earnings. 

According to a statement on Saudi Exchange, the decrease was primarily attributed to several non-recurring items recorded in 2024, as well as segment-level performance variations. 

The decline in net profit was largely due to the absence of a one-off gain recorded in 2024 from the distribution of Savola Group’s 34.52 percent stake in Almarai Co. to eligible shareholders, valued at SR11.3 billion after a SR288 million zakat charge, the filing said.  

Earnings were also affected by a lower contribution from associates following the absence of profit from the previously distributed Almarai investment, which had added SR782 million in 2024. 

The statement said profit in the retail segment fell to SR115 million from SR154 million, mainly due to higher operating expenses linked to new store openings and continued investment in the CXR program. The decline was also attributed to the absence of a one-off SR16 million provision reversal on aged receivables recorded in 2024.  

Operating expenses also increased in 2025 due to the consolidation of United Sugar Co. of Egypt, which had been accounted for as an associate in 2024.  

Savola, which has a strong presence in the food and retail sectors across the Middle East and North Africa, also announced the board’s recommendation to distribute SR510 million in cash dividends for 2025. 

A separate filing showed that the total number of shares eligible for dividends amounted to 300 million, with a dividend of SR1.7 per share. The statement added that dividends represent 17 percent of the share’s par value. 

“These distributions are in line with the Group’s announced dividends policy, which is to distribute cash dividends of approximately 50 percent to 60 percent of the net profit generated during the fiscal year,” the Tadawul statement said. 

Savola’s share rose about 9.2 percent during the day’s trading session on the Tadawul All Share Index, reaching SR23.93, after the company reported fourth-quarter profit above average market expectations.