East African Cables Rises to Highest in 20 Months: Nairobi Mover

East African Cables Ltd. (EACL), the region’s biggest cable manufacturer, rose to the highest level in more than 20 months after it increased a dividend payout by 25 percent.

The stock rose 2.2 percent to 13.75 shillings by the 3 p.m. close in Nairobi, the strongest since June 10, 2011, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. More than double the three-month daily average volume of shares were traded.

The company’s board recommended a dividend of 1 shilling ($0.01) a share compared with 0.80 shilling a year earlier, according to a statement yesterday.

The increase “is a motivation to some investors,” Ted Macharia, a research analyst at Nairobi-based AIB Capital Ltd., said by phone.

East African Cables’ profit in the 12 months through December surged to 440.7 million shillings from 291.6 million shillings a year earlier, it said yesterday. Revenue slipped 13 percent to 4.3 billion shillings because of a fall in prices on the London Metal Exchange, according to the company.

To contact the reporter on this story: Eric Ombok in Nairobi at eombok@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Vernon Wessels at vwessels@bloomberg.net