While the world economy is still proving to be sluggish overall and many companies are struggling, there are some which seem to have hammered out the rails to success. Many countries have begun quantitative easing into the market and have made it difficult for investment companies to do well because of uncertainties in the market. However, Waha Capital has seen their first quarter profits up a smashing 20% to Dh 182.2m. Compared to the same time last year this is more than a 20% increase for the same period of time.
A majority of these profits came from the Waha Capital’s shares in the New York-listed company AerCap Holdings which acquired International Lease Finance Corporation (ILFC) in mid-2014. However, Hussain Al Nowais insists in a press statement “the financial results recorded during this quarter demonstrate Waha Capital’s stature as a successful investment company rooted in Abu Dhabi, with a strong portfolio of regional and global investments. We have demonstrated sustained profitability through the strong performance of our diversified portfolio of direct investments.” Some of the other investments the company holds are in areas such as education, health and oil services.
Despite Waha Capital’s positive gains last year and so far for the first quarter of this year their stock price has lagged behind in the market. The stock is still trading at a discounted price in most places. Analysts believe this is due to hesitation with investors not having a comprehensive understanding of Waha Capital’s investment portfolio. They are seeing the major gains coming from AerCap Holdings and feel the company’s fortune is entirely reliant on that one stock, so if Aercap Holdings goes down so will Waha Capital. If an investor takes the time though to inspect Waha Capital’s other investments they will see that most of them are also showing good growth.
Shareholders for the company once again approved a cash dividend distribution of .3 Dh per share which is a 140% increase from last year. Hussain Al Nowais is looking forward to very positive gains during the next three quarters and it seems like now is the right time for investors to buy in on the company because of the market lagging behind on the price of Waha Capital’s stock. Besides Waha Capital, Dunia Finance, Anglo Arabian Healthcare and National Petroleum Services also saw major gains in their businesses during the first quarter. Overall it appears as though business in the UAE is doing extremely well.