August 30 (SeeNews) - Bulgarian construction company Trace Group Hold [BUL:T57] said that it generated a consolidated net profit of 2.75 million levs ($1.5 million/1.4 million euro) in the first six months of the year, reversing a consolidated net loss of 5.15 million levs a year earlier.
The positive performance came about as the company more than doubled its total operating revenue, to 153.7 million levs in January-June from 66.1 million levs in the like period of 2022, Trace Group Hold said in a interim financial statement on Tuesday.
Revenue from construction contracts, which made up over 93% of the total amount, soared by over 175% on the year to 142.5 million levs. At the same time, product sales jumped by 151% to 7.1 million levs, mostly due to higher sales of sales of asphalt mixes and aggregates.
Trace Group Hold also recorded a strong increase in first-half operating expenses, to 150.8 million levs from 71.5 million levs a year ago. This was largely to costs of materials more than tripling to 54.3 million levs, while external services costs also rose significantly, to 77.2 million levs from 29.85 million levs.
The civil engineering contractor added it expects revenue from construction contracts to expand to 309.1 million levs in the nine months through September compared to 53.2 million levs over the first nine months of 2022.
In the first half of the year, Trace Group Hold won several important contracts which include road and street infrastructure building and repair in Sofia and Stara Zagora worth a total of over 37 million levs, a Pliska railway station repair contract worth 11.8 million levs and a 3.3 million levs contract to upgrade runway surfaces at Sofia Airport.
Trace Group Hold is also taking part in motorway construction contracts in Bulgaria, Serbia and Romania as well as the construction of the third metro line in Sofia.
Shares in Trace Group Hold closed at 3.80 levs in their most recent trading session on the Sofia bourse on Tuesday. The stock has gained over 5% in value in the past 12 months, resulting in a market capitalisation of roughly 92 million levs.
(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)