{"id":10290,"date":"2026-09-17T08:10:27","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T08:10:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/?p=10290"},"modified":"2026-09-17T08:10:28","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T08:10:28","slug":"legend-internets-fy2026-profit-falls-91-as-n672-million-asset-gain-masks-operating-loss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/index.php\/2026\/09\/17\/legend-internets-fy2026-profit-falls-91-as-n672-million-asset-gain-masks-operating-loss\/","title":{"rendered":"Legend Internet\u2019s FY2026 profit falls 91% as N672 million asset-gain masks operating loss"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"975\" height=\"558\" src=\"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/image-86.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10291\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/image-86.png 975w, https:\/\/ograsset.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/image-86-300x172.png 300w, https:\/\/ograsset.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/image-86-768x440.png 768w, https:\/\/ograsset.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/image-86-700x400.png 700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 975px) 100vw, 975px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Legend Internet Plc reported a pre-tax profit of N13.21 million for the 12 months ended July 31, 2026, down 92.35% from N172.66 million in the prior year, largely driven by nearly nine-fold growth in administrative expenses and a more than tenfold surge in finance costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to the <a href=\"https:\/\/doclib.ngxgroup.com\/Financial_NewsDocs\/47902_LEGEND_INTERNET_PLC-_YEAR_END_-_FINANCIAL_STATEMENT_FOR_2026_FINANCIAL_STATEMENTS_SEPTEMBER_2026.pdf\"><strong>company\u2019s financial results filed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX)<\/strong><\/a> on Tuesday, September 15, 2026, profit for the period fell 90.73% year-on-year to N13.21 million from N142.46 million, even as the top line came under pressure across the review period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A one-off N672 million gain on asset disposal provided support, offsetting what could have been a significant operating loss in the financial performance of the broadband and digital services provider.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Key highlights (12 months ended July 2026 vs 12 months ended July 2025):<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Revenue: N1.10 billion, down -7.44% YoY<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Gross profit: N714.00 million, down -6.23% YoY<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Profit before tax: N13.21 million, down -92.35% YoY<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Total assets: N4.14 billion, up +28.94% YoY<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Total equity: N2.76 billion, down -2.73% YoY<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Earnings per share: 1 kobo, down from 7 kobo<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Borrowings: N1.14 billion, up +1,419.10% YoY<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Cash and cash equivalents: N6.09 million, down -71.02% YoY<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Driving the numbers:<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An analysis of Legend Internet\u2019s FY2026 performance reveals that the sharp decline in profitability was driven by the convergence of three pressure points: a shrinking core revenue base, a near-doubling of administrative overhead, and a dramatic escalation in financing costs \u2014 offset only by a large non-recurring gain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Revenue declined 7.44% to N1.10 billion from N1.19 billion, with the company\u2019s dominant Legend Fibre segment weakening to N930.20 million from N1.12 billion, a fall of about 17.3%.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Cost of sales fell faster, down 9.59% to N388.46 million, lifting gross margin to 64.76% from 63.93%.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Administrative expenses surged 88.87% to N1.06 billion from N560.18 million, with professional fees alone jumping to N355.31 million from just N4.30 million a year earlier, indicating the bulk of the expense growth.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The resulting operating loss before other income widened to N344.05 million, a reversal from an operating profit of N201.24 million in FY2025.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Finance costs compounded the pressure, rising 1,001.15% to N314.74 million from N28.58 million, linked to a N1.12 billion bridge facility outstanding at July 31, 2026, carrying a 35% annual interest rate and maturing in December 2026.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Without the N672 million gain on disposal of assets recorded as other income, the company would have posted a substantial pre-tax loss rather than a marginal profit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Balance sheet and liquidity:<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Total assets rose 28.94% to N4.14 billion, driven largely by higher receivables, prepayments and other current assets, while total liabilities held roughly flat at N371.48 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Total equity, however, slipped 2.73% to N2.76 billion, and retained earnings fell 11.06% to N623.29 million.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Cash and cash equivalents fell 71.02% to N6.09 million from N21.02 million, while operating cash flow remained deeply negative at N1.14 billion outflow, worse than the N72.64 million outflow recorded in the prior year.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Borrowings ballooned to N1.14 billion from N75.23 million, a rise of more than 1,400%, almost entirely accounted for by the bridge facility.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On a brighter note, wholesale bandwidth revenue surged 331.4% to N162.58 million from N37.68 million, and CPE sales grew roughly 402% to N7.20 million from N1.44 million, improving the revenue mix.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Shareholding structure changes:<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The filing shows a marked shift in ownership between May 19, 2025, and July 31, 2026, with issued share capital unchanged at 2 billion shares.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Bruce Ayonote\u2019s stake fell to 492.64 million shares (24.63%) from 686.21 million (34.31%), while Suleiman Arzika\u2019s holding dropped to 380.04 million shares (19.00%) from 645.20 million (32.26%).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Legacy Guardian LLP\u2019s stake also declined, to 58.60 million shares (2.93%) from 112.50 million (5.62%), while Synergy Fiberco (Mauritius) Ltd\u2019s 500 million shares (25%) stake was unchanged.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Combined, total substantial shareholdings fell from 97.20% to 71.56%, while free float rose sharply from 1.31% to 27.24% \u2014 an increase of roughly 518.55 million shares.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The company disclosed that it is now compliant with the Exchange\u2019s Main Board free-float requirement as a result.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Market reaction:<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Legend Internet (LEGENDINT) closed its last trading day, Tuesday, September 15, 2026, at N4.05 per share, up 1.2% from the previous close of N4.00.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The stock began the year at N5.29 and has since lost 23.4% of its value, ranking it 113th on the NGX by year-to-date performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shares have fallen from a year-high of N7.98 on March 6, 2026, to Tuesday\u2019s close of N4.05, and have shed a further 7% since August 17.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Investors will likely be watching closely to see whether management can rein in administrative costs and refinance the high-interest bridge facility before its December 2026 maturity, particularly given how thin the cash buffer has become relative to the scale of outstanding borrowings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps:\/\/nairametrics.com\/2026\/09\/16\/legend-internets-fy2026-profit-falls-91-as-n672-million-asset-gain-masks-operating-loss\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Legend Internet Plc reported a pre-tax profit of N13.21 million for the 12 months ended July 31, 2026, down 92.35% from N172.66 million in the prior year, largely driven by nearly nine-fold growth in administrative expenses and a more than tenfold surge in finance costs. According to the company\u2019s financial results filed on the Nigerian&#8230; <\/p>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/index.php\/2026\/09\/17\/legend-internets-fy2026-profit-falls-91-as-n672-million-asset-gain-masks-operating-loss\/\" class=\"excerpt-read-more\">Read More \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":10291,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10290","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fit-row"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/image-86.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10290","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10290"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10290\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10293,"href":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10290\/revisions\/10293"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10291"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10290"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10290"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ograsset.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10290"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}