Academy of Learning’s expansions to impact H2 results: CEO

The decline in Academy of Learning Co.'s (AOL) net profit for H1 2024 was “normal” and planned in advance, as it came as a result of the expansion and growth strategy adopted by the company through opening new branches in current and new cities such as in Dammam and Riyadh, Chairman Khalid Al-Ammar told Argaam.

The company has expanded the programs and services it offers to keep pace with the needs of the Saudi labor market. It increased the number of branches in 2024 to 11 branches and the number of diplomas to 24, which will enable it to achieve the growth it aspires to in the coming years, he added.

Meanwhile, the operational losses weighed on the company's profit as planned and expected, said the Chairman. He clarified that, excluding the costs of investing in expansion and opening new branches, net profit in 2024 would reach SAR 44. 2 million, compared to SAR 28.5 million in 2023, an increase of 54%.

“However, due to the company's desire to maintain the increasing growth rates and continue them in the future, which reached about 40% in 2024 - a very impressive growth rate in a promising and open market in which we are among the leading players - it decided to continue expanding and agreed to reduce its full-year profit in the current year in exchange for achieving its goals and strategic plan in the future,” said Al-Ammar.

He expected that the expansion decision will be positively reflected in the future on the number of students, which in turn will reflect on the company's business volume, revenues and net profit. “Such a positive impact began to appear last year with an increase in the number of students by 20% before new branches operated with their planned capacity, which confirms that the decision to continue expanding is correct in light of a promising market,” according to Al-Ammar.

He indicated that the expansion policy adopted by the management led to a rise in the number of students served by the company during 2024 to reach 14,300 students, a growth of 42% year-on-year compared to 10,100 students.

“As for the second half of 2024, the company served 9,970 students, compared to 8,342 students in the same period of the previous year, an increase of 20%. These numbers are expected to increase significantly in the coming period after the large and qualitative expansions carried out by the company in 2024,” the CEO stated.

He further said that his company is set to begin witnessing the positive impact of last year's expansions in the second half of 2025 and beyond.

He stated that the Kingdom’s training and education market is promising, especially after the incentives package offered by the Ministry of Education, from providing investment opportunities, developing systems, and providing information that helps investors deploy their money in this promising sector.

The company is highly resilient in keeping pace with developments and seizing opportunities. It is constantly seeking to expand both geographically and qualitatively. There are many expansion projects currently under study, with decisions yet to be taken after studying all aspects in the interest of the company and its shareholders in accordance with medium and long-term strategic plan and objectives, Al-Ammar added.

According to Argaam’s data, Academy for Learning’s H1 2024 net profit fell by 17% year-on-year to SAR 12.1 million, from SAR 14.5 million.