MENA Newswire News Desk: Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE) has announced a net profit of $310.8 million for the first nine months of 2024, a 54.9% increase compared to the same period in 2023, reflecting an additional $110.2 million. This growth was driven by improved profit margins and effective asset management strategies.
For the nine-month period ending September 30, 2024, DAE reported a profit before tax of $326.6 million, up from $207.5 million in the previous year. Revenue for the same timeframe reached $1.017 billion, a year-on-year increase of 2.8%, or $27.9 million, while operating profit before exceptional items rose by 10.2% to $512.1 million, amounting to an increase of $47.6 million.
DAE’s total assets grew to $12.771 billion as of the end of September, marking an uptick from $12.262 billion year-on-year. The company’s recent investments include agreements to acquire 23 aircraft valued at roughly $1.1 billion. Notably, 91% of these aircraft are narrow-body models, and 86% feature next-generation technology, underscoring DAE’s commitment to sustainable and efficient fleet expansion.
Throughout the nine-month period, DAE acquired 47 aircraft, consisting of 11 owned and 36 managed, while aircraft sales also totaled 47, split between 16 owned and 31 managed units. The company successfully signed 103 lease agreements, extensions, and amendments, with 85 applying to owned aircraft and 18 to managed.
Firoz Tarapore, Chief Executive Officer of DAE, highlighted the robust financial metrics achieved this quarter. “Our profit before tax increased by 57% (13% before exceptional items), and our revenue grew by 3%, resulting in pre-tax profitability margins of 23% and a pre-tax return on equity of 11%,” Tarapore stated. “DAE’s liquidity and capital adequacy remain exceptionally strong, with a closing liquidity of $4.0 billion and a Liquidity Coverage Ratio of 335%. Our leverage, measured as net debt-to-equity, has improved to 2.45x from 2.53x at the close of 2023.”
The company’s engineering division also reported substantial growth. DAE Engineering’s revenue increased by 35% year-on-year to $131 million, while profitability rose by 128%, reaching $27.6 million. Development of additional hangar capacity at the Amman, Jordan facility is on track, with the aim of adding five more hangar lines by year-end 2024, expanding DAE’s service offerings and operational capacity.