Abdul Samad Rabiu’s direct equity yields N189bn BUA Cement dividend

Ownership concentration in Nigeria’s heavy industries has yielded another historic payday. Abdul Samad Rabiu, chairman, BUA Cement Plc took home a mind-boggling N189.74 billion from his personal stake in the company after the shareholders officially approved the company’s financial rewards for the year ended December 2025.

The Nigeria’s second-richest man directly holds 18.974 billion units or 56.03 percent of BUA Cement Plc’s 33.864billion shares outstanding. BUA Cement Plc on May 21 paid a final dividend of N10 per ordinary share, subject to appropriate withholding tax (WHT).

BUA Cement Plc paid a total of N338.64 billion as dividend. Aside his direct equity holding, Abdul Samad Rabiu also has indirect equity holding in BUA Cement Plc through the following: Damnaz Cement Company Limited (637.403 million units), BUA Industries Limited (13.462billion units), and BUA International Limited (8.137 million units).

BUA Cement Plc has a free float value of N139.960billion as of December 31,2025 meeting the free float requirements for listing on the Main Board of the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX).

The multi-billion-naira earnings, fueled by record-breaking revenues and a sharp rebound in net profits, further cements Rabiu’s position as one of the most powerful and wealthiest corporate leaders on the continent.

The transition of BUA Cement Plc’s 2025 earnings into a massive N338.64 billion total dividend payout comes down to a combination of explosive profit growth and a highly generous corporate payout strategy.

In 2025, BUA Cement Plc revenue for the first time surpassed N1trillion mark to reach N1.179trillion, up by 34.5 percent from N876.469 billion in 2024. The company’s profit after tax of N356.038billion in 2025 grew by 381.7 percent from N73.909billion in 2024.

Because profits hit N356 billion against 33.86 billion shares, the company’s earnings per share (EPS) landed perfectly at N10. By declaring a N10 dividend out of N10 in earnings per share, BUA Cement opted for an aggressive 95.1 percent payout ratio from its total N356 billion profit pool.

BUA Cement Plc closed the trading year 2025 at N163.70 per share. The stock began the year 2025 trading at N93 and wrapped up the year at N163.70. This price movement in 2025 represented an impressive 76.02 percent capital appreciation over the 12-month period.

Further tracking the stock’s more recent momentum shows that the growth spilled over aggressively into the first half (H1) of 2026, with the stock re-rating on the back of explosive first-quarter (Q1) earnings to hit an all-time 52-week high of N460 in mid-May 2026.

This strong upward trajectory was a direct reflection of investor confidence building throughout the year2025, fueled by BUA’s revenue crossing the N1 trillion milestone and the anticipation of that massive N10 per share dividend payout.

Instead of hoarding the cash for capital reserves, the board relied on expanding production capacity (aiming for 23 million tonnes) and upcoming operational cost-cutters—like the 2026 BUA LNG project—to fuel future growth, allowing them to pass almost every kobo of 2025’s net profit directly back to equity investors. The BUA LNG project is a central pillar of BUA Group’s strategy to insulate its heavy manufacturing operations—particularly BUA Cement—from Nigeria’s volatile energy grid and the high cost of diesel and Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO).

At N378 per share on Friday June 5, the stock offers another re-entry opportunity for investors. This puts the company’s equities capitalisation at N12.8trillion. This N12.8 trillion market cap firmly solidifies BUA Cement’s status as a dominant “SWOOT” (Stocks Worth Over One Trillion) heavyweight on the Nigerian Exchange, trailing only Dangote Cement in the industrial goods sector. Abdul Samad Rabiu’s 18.974 billion direct equity holding in BUA Cement currently translates to N7.17trillion in value. (BusinessDay)