State-owned SEC’s shares fall 10% despite a fourfold profit leap

RIYADH: Saudi Electricity Co. saw its shares drop by nearly 10 percent during Wednesday trading, despite recording a massive jump of 375 percent in annual profits.

The share price reached SR27.7 ($7.38), down from a previous close of SR30.75.

Earlier in the day, the state-owned utility firm posted profits of SR14.4 billion in 2021, up from SR3.03 billion a year earlier, according to a bourse filing.

Saudi financial analyst and CEO, Muhamed Al Suwayed, attributed the results to “the restructured debt deal with the government last year to convert SEC’s liabilities into Shariah-compliant equity-like instruments.”