Saudi healthcare companies witness Tadawul trading surge

DUBAI: More than 70 companies listed on the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) are trading above their three-month averages, according to data compiled by Argaam.

A review of the rankings showed that healthcare companies dominated the top of the list, with Middle East Healthcare Co. (MEHC), owner and operator of the Saudi German Hospital brand, trading at 1,417 percent above its three-month average, according to the latest figures at the end of last week on March 18.

MEHC reported a net profit after Zakat and tax of SR101 million ($26.93 million) for 2020, a year-on-year increase of 4 percent. Last year was a busy one for the company. While the number of outpatients decreased from 1.25 million in 2019 to 1.17 million in 2020, the number of inpatients soared from 57,000 in 2019 to more than 70,400, a year-on-year increase of 23.5 percent.

As part of its expansion plan, MEHC is also planning to push ahead with extensions to its hospitals in Makkah and Riyadh, which are expected to be finalized in the last quarter of 2021.

Second in the rankings was National Medical Care Co. (NMCC), trading at 549 percent above its three-month average. NMCC reported a net profit after Zakat and tax of SR75.3 million for the first nine months of 2020, a year-on-year increase of 25 percent.

NMCC is also moving ahead with expansion plans, and on March 11 signed a SR32.4 million agreement with Tabrak Najed Contracting Co. to renovate the Riyadh Care Hospital. The project will be completed in six phases over the next 18 months.

Third on the list was retailer Alhokair Group, which traded at 541 percent above its three-month average, followed by Al Yamamah Steel Industries Co., which saw trading up by 533 percent.

Rounding out the top five was another healthcare provider, Al Hammadi Co. for Development and Investment, which was trading 505 percent above its three-month average. In its most recent results, the company reported that its net profit after Zakat and tax for the first nine months of 2020 was up 54 percent year-on-year to SR100.6 million.