INVL Baltic Farmland, a company that invests in agricultural land, had revenue of EUR 649 thousand in 2020 and an audited net profit of EUR 895 thousand for the year. Compared to 2019, the company’s revenue increased 0.6%, while its net profit decreased 21.2%.
INVL Baltic Farmland’s equity at the end of last year was EUR 14.015 million or EUR 4.34 per share. Equity per share increased 6.7% during the year, also taking into account the dividends paid out during 2020.
According to a valuation of INVL Baltic Farmland’s assets at the end of 2020, the value of its land holdings increased 4.4% during the year to EUR 15.36 million, or EUR 4 960 per hectare, assessing the total area of the managed plot. The valuation was performed by Corporation Matininkai.
In its operating forecast for last year, the company had planned revenue of EUR 652 thousand and a consolidated net profit of EUR 390 thousand.
The forecast assumed that the value of the agricultural land on the balance sheet would not change and did not consider any change in debt receivables. Eliminating the factors not taken into account in the forecast as well as related profit-tax expenses, INVL Baltic Farmland’s net profit would be EUR 391 thousand. Therefore, it can be said that INVL Baltic Farmland met the profit targets which were set for 2020.
“For the last several years the country’s agriculture sector has faced complicated climate conditions and volatile grain-culture procurement prices, but 2020 was really a fantastic year for Lithuanian crop farmers. With favourable weather conditions in the country, farmers set new records for grain crop harvests and yields, and as a result last year’s results were better than expected,” said Justė Gumovskienė, the director of INVL Farmland Management, which administers INVL Baltic Farmland’s land.
The board of INVL Baltic Farmland proposes approving a dividend of EUR 0.15 per share for 2020, allocating a total of EUR 484 thousand for dividends.
“Setting aside the annual revaluation of assets, which has a significant impact on earnings, the company's operating performance in 2020 was successful and it thus has accumulated free funds sufficient to pay larger dividends than those envisaged in its dividend policy,” said Alvydas Banys, the chairman of the board of INVL Baltic Farmland. A decision on the payment of dividends will be considered at the ordinary general meeting of shareholders to be held on 9 April this year.
The company’s board is proposing also that shareholders approve an authorisation for INVL Baltic Farmland to acquire its own shares. The proposed minimum share price is EUR 3 and the maximum EUR 5. Permission for the company to acquire its own shares would remain in effect for 18 months from the date of the decision.
Based on the rental agreements in effect, INVL Baltic Farmland plans during 2021 to receive EUR 665 thousand of revenue and earn a consolidated net profit of EUR 385 thousand. The operating forecasts assume that during this year the value of land holdings will not change, there will be no land purchase or sale transactions, and there will be no changes in provisions for receivable amounts or impact of tenant debts on the size of the administration fee.
INVL Baltic Farmland is listed on the Nasdaq Vilnius stock exchange. Its subsidiaries own approximately 3 thousand hectares of agricultural land in Lithuania which is rented out to agriculture companies and farmers.
