FAQs

Grupo Argos’ common shares are listed on the BVC under the GRUPOARGOS mnemonic; and the preferred ones as PFGRUPOARG.

The difference between common and preferred shares lies in the rights each of them has. In the case of common shares, they have both economic and political rights, while preferred shares have only economic rights. The economic rights refer to the participation in the profits obtained by the company (dividends) plus the benefit given by the difference between the purchase price and the sale price (recovery) and the right to buy new shares issued by the company (rights subscription) On the other hand, political rights refer to the shareholder being able to participate and vote in the Shareholders’ General Assembly and review the books of the Company within the time limits established for it. However, investors with preferred shares have political rights in special circumstances that can be reviewed in more detail in the following link.

Grupo Argos has an authorized capital of COP 75,000,000,000 divided into COP 1,200,000,000 shares, with a nominal value of COP 62.50. The subscribed and paid-in capital is COP 53.933.100.750 represented in 651,102,432 common shares, of which 5,702,432 are repurchased shares, for a total of 645,400,000 ordinary shares outstanding. Additionally, the Company has 211,827,180 preferred shares, with a nominal value of COP 62.50, for a total of 857,227,180 outstanding shares.

Grupo Argos does not have an established dividend policy, but historically a trend of dividend growth can be observed with respect to those decreed the previous year.

In accordance with current tax provisions in Colombia, profits from investments in companies are taxed with respect to income tax and dividends. The first, usually paid at the head of the company, issuer, and the second by the shareholder.

In Grupo Argos, in 2019, our investors receive their dividends exempt from tax payments as a result of the taxation that the company has already made to the Colombian State and that can be transferred to the shareholder. The foregoing in support of the provisions of articles 242, 242-1, 245 and 246-1 of the National Tax Statute.

Grupo Inversiones Suramericana S.A., Grupo Nutresa S.A., Colombian Funds, International Funds and Other Investors. For more information on the shareholder composition, click here.

The publication date of our quarterly results for the year 2019 are the following: May 14, August 13 and November 13. To consult our calendar of events, go to the following Link.

You can listen to the recordings of all our calls with investors in the financial reports section here.

All our quarterly and annual reports can be downloaded here.

The contribution to income and consolidated Ebitda of the strategic businesses as of March 31, 2019 is as follows: 

Grupo Argos fiscal year is from December to December.

As of March 2019, the debt at a separate level closed at COP 1.5 trillion, 16% below than the one of the same period of 2018.

The consolidated financial statements are those that are presented as if it were a single entity. The participation held over each subsidiary determines the treatment that must be used to build the consolidated income statement:

• If the participation on the subsidiary is greater than 50%, the financial statements are added eliminating the transactions between the subsidiaries in the case of Grupo Argos are Cementos Argos, Celsia, ODINSA and Opain.
• If the participation is between 20% and 50%, they are included through the participation method (MPP). In the case of Grupo Argos there are Sura and Pactia.
• If the participation is less than 20%, only the dividends received are taken into account and enter the income statement directly to the income of the holding company. In the case of Grupo Argos, Nutresa and others.

Los estados financieros separados son los estados financieros de Grupo Argos donde las inversiones del holding se contabilizan a partir de las cantidades invertidas en cada filial. Si la participación es superior al 50% se contabiliza por método de participación (Cementos Argos, Celsia, ODINSA y Opain). Si la participación es inferior al 50% solo se tienen en cuenta los dividendos recibidos y son contabilizados en los ingresos del holding (Sura, Pactia y Nutresa).

Participation method: equivalent to the net profit weighted by the participation of the holding company in that subsidiary.

Since 2012, the year when Grupo Argos began as a Holding, the performance of administrators began to be measured based on the fulfillment of short-term, long-term goals, and advances on sustainability; indicators that seek to improve efficiency, sustainability and profitability, while ensuring the operation of companies in the long term.

In the short term, employees participate according to their level of contribution as follows: Executives 62.5%, Senior Management 64.3%, Middle Management 72.7%, for others it is 100% since it has no variable long term. The short-term variable is composed of the following indicators: 

• EBITDA
• Net Income of the Controller
• Primary Surplus
• Budget Execution
• Department / Business Indicators

In the long term, employees participate according to their level of contribution as follows: Executives 37.5%, Senior Management 35.7% and Middle Management 27.3%. The long-term variable is composed of the following indicators:

• ROCE (Return on capital employed)
• OCF (Operating Cash Flow) / EBITDA
• SPREAD TSR (Total Shareholder Return)
• Sustainability

In terms of sustainability, we have a vision to maintain high standards in ESE (economic, social and environmental) that ensure the sustainability of the company, which can be measured with external and independent qualifications such as DJSI. Our goal is to be included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (Global, Emerging or Mila), or obtain a higher score compared to the score obtained the previous year, and discuss once a year with the Board of Directors the progress of the strategy of Sustainability and compliance with the goals of reducing emissions, water consumption and human capital, and presenting to the Board of Directors a quantitative measurement of the externalities of the company, measuring what is delivered and taken from the environment. With the above we seek:

• (Attract new investors)
• Access to more efficient Capital
• Reduce financing costs

Grupo Argos seeks to develop infrastructure platforms that transform societies in the Americas. That is why we act actively on the strategic definitions of our strategic businesses with a focus on the search for profitable growth and reallocation of capital to maximize the return on invested capital. In a transversal way we seek to achieve greater cost and expense efficiencies and stability. and strengthening dividend flow; as well as the optimization of the capital structure in order to leverage future growth.

In each of the businesses, we see the strategy summarized as follows:

• Cementos Argos: focus on efficiency and strategic reallocation of assets.
• Celsia: simplification, reorganization and strengthening of the structure.
• Odinsa: targeting, capital structure and focus on project generation.

• Compliance with business plans: impact on the performance of the subsidiaries' business plan due to changes in market conditions, economic activity, regulation and social and environmental matters.
• Capital allocation: errors in the capital allocation processes that affect the relative performance of the portfolio.
• Financial flexibility: loss of flexibility in the capital structure of the companies due to an inadequate composition of the indebtedness, financial capacity of partners and counterparty and / or inefficiency in investment vehicles of Grupo Argos and its subsidiaries.
• Reputation: significant impact on the image of the companies that compromises the trust of any of the stakeholders.
• Changes in the economic and political environment: changes that may generate political or macroeconomic uncertainty, changes in legal, tax or environmental regulations. Loss of credibility of the institutions of the countries or a deterioration in the sovereign credit rating.
• Human talent management: difficulties in attracting, developing and retaining human talent.

a. Fraud, corruption, money laundering and terrorist financing: improper practices by employees, partners, suppliers.

b.  Projects: delays and / or cost overruns in the execution of projects of the holding company, due to failures in estimating the necessary, unforeseen resources or adverse conditions in its execution and consolidation.