Bulgarian diversified group Synergon Holding [BUL:SNRG] said that it turned a consolidated net profit excluding minority interest of 6.04 million levs ($3.3 million/3.1 million euro) in the first quarter, compared to a consolidated net loss of 2.7 million levs in the same period of 2021.
In the first three months of 2022, Synergon Holding's total operating revenue surged 156% year-on-year to 242.8 million levs, the company said in a stock exchange filing on Thursday.
The positive result was mainly due to a jump in revenue from the sale of goods to 237.3 million levs from 91.7 million levs in the first quarter of last year.
First-quarter expenses also grew in annual comparison terms, nearly two and half times to 233.7 million levs as cost of goods sold soared 159%. Expenses for materials and personnel also rose, by 32.8% and 8.5%, respectively.
The company said that the higher sales revenue is mostly due to increases in both the volume of and revenue from sales of electricity, gas and liquid fuels.
Synergon Holding was set up in 1996 as a privatisation fund under Bulgaria's voucher privatisation programme. The fund was transformed into a holding structure the following year. It has more than 20 subsidiaries and affiliated companies operating in various sectors of the Bulgarian economy such as energy, tourism, chemicals and construction materials production.
As at 1414 CEST on Friday, shares in Synergon traded flat at 0.75 levs, after closing 8.7% higher on Thursday, bourse data showed.
(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)