Abu Dhabi: Agthia Group, the Abu Dhabi-based food and beverage company, reported on Tuesday Dh231.3 million in net profit for 2015, marking a 20 per cent increase from the Dh193.3 million reported in 2014.

The results put net profits for the fourth quarter of the year at Dh52.2 million — up 22.6 per cent from the Dh42.5 million reported in the same quarter in 2014.

Meanwhile, net sales (revenue) in 2015 grew 13 per cent to reach Dh1.87 billion, driven mainly by Agthia’s flour, water and beverages, and dairy segments, which are part of the company’s core business.

Iqbal Hamzah, chief executive officer of Agthia, said that while he expected the current volatility across global markets to continue, he expected to continue seeing strong growth in 2016.

“Overall, there are some indications of slowdown in these categories in the UAE, but our target for 2016 is to grow sales and profits in double digits, provided there’s no drastic change in the economic situation regionally and globally. It will be a difficult year, but we’re targeting double digit growth,” he told Gulf News.

He added that growth this year will come primarily from Agthia’s core business, along with mergers and acquisitions, and geographical expansion. He said he was targeting to land one acquisition in 2016.

In October 2015, Agthia announced its acquisition of Al Bayan Water as part of its plan to grow market share. Hamzah said the acquisition was valued between Dh160 million and Dh180 million, adding that the next acquisition may go up to Dh500 million.

“Total Capex [capital expenditure] for 2016 that we’ve allocated is Dh250 million for manufacturing and infrastructure expansion. Work has already started on these projects, so the current situation has not impacted any of our projects and we’re moving as per the schedule,” he said.

Agthia is also planning to expand geographically in 2016, with plans to launch its flour products in Saudi Arabia by March, and enter the water and dairy markets through acquisitions in the Kingdom.

Consumer Business, which produces and distributes brands like Al Ain Bottled Water and Yoplait dairy products, saw Dh86 million in net profits in 2015 — up 51 per cent over 2014. The growth was driven by higher sales and better margins as a result of lower raw material prices and higher efficiency.

Meanwhile, the Agri Business saw Dh226 million in net profit, driven by higher sales and better gross margins.

Earnings per share rose from Dh0.322 in 2014 to Dh0.386 in 2015.

The company’s shares were down 2.76 per cent to Dh7.05 on Tuesday on Abu Dhabi bourse.