Egypt's Juhayna Shares at Two-Year High as Profit Gains

Juhayna Food Industries (JUFO), Egypt’s largest publicly traded producer of packaged milk, rose the most in almost two years as the company announced a 29 percent profit gain.

Shares advanced 2.3 percent to 6.14 pounds at the close in Cairo, the highest since December 2010, after the company said nine-month profit rose to 240 million pounds ($39 million) compared with 185.7 million pounds in the same period last year.

“We’re expecting their growth to accelerate by the end of 2013 and into 2014,” Hany Genena, head of research at Pharos Securities Brokerage, said by phone. “They’re investing heavily in distribution centers and their yogurt factory is expected to start producing in the third quarter of 2013.”

Juhayna said in September its distribution unit secured a medium-term loan of 150 million pounds from Barclays Plc Egypt for expansion in the North African country. Profit may surge 32 percent this year to 245 million pounds, according to the mean estimate of seven analysts on Bloomberg.

Seven of nine analysts have a buy recommendation and two have a hold recommendation, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

To contact the reporter on this story: Nadine Marroushi in Cairo at nmarroushi@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Alaa Shahine at asalha@bloomberg.net