RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index gained 71.58 points, or 0.64 percent, to close at 11,277.60 on Wednesday as 136 of the 224 stocks finished in the green, while 75 ended in the red. The top performing sector of the Saudi Stock Exchange was Food & Beverages, which soared 2.35 percent, while the Insurance and Banks sectors followed by 1.70 and 1.50 percent, respectively. While the parallel market Nomu rose 0.88 percent to close at 20,864.69, the MSCI Tadawul Index edged up 0.85 percent to close at 1,517.45. The total trading turnover of the benchmark index was SR6.01 billion ($1.6 billion). In terms of the top performing stocks on Tadawul, Al Hassan Ghazi Ibrahim Shaker Co. rose the most, soaring 9.83 percent to close at SR26.25. Allied Cooperative Insurance Group and The Co. for Cooperative Insurance also climbed, with their share prices hitting 5.81 percent and 5.20 percent, respectively. The worst performer was Saudi Airlines Catering Co., which lost 7.37 percent to close at SR89.90. On the announcements front, Balady Poultry Trading Co. recorded a net profit of SR24.3 million in the first quarter of 2023, which equates to 170.42 percent growth when compared to the SR8.99 million in the same period of 2022. Sales rose 44.13 percent reaching SR177.1 million in the first quarter of 2023 compared to SR122.9 million. The company said it was able to grow its profit margins with lower raw material prices. Its share price closed higher by 13.32 percent at SR146. Wafrah for Industry and Development Co. reported a slowdown in net profits of 8.6 percent despite a rise in sales of 12.19 percent in the quarter ending in March of 2023. It recorded a net profit of SR5.62 million compared to SR6.15 million in the year-ago period. The company registered sales of SR38.77 million compared to SR34.56 million in the prior year. According to the announcements the company pursued an expensive growth strategy that impacted its bottom line. It successfully grew its market share by offering products at a discount. Its profits were offset by multiple factors, such as the rising cost of raw materials, shipping expenses, and selling and general administration expenses. Its share price closed down by 2.12 percent at SR37.65. Abdullah Al Othaim Markets Co. recorded a rise in net profits of 17.91 percent reaching SR120.01 million compared to SR101.78 million in the first quarter of 2022. Its sales figures were trending on a similar trajectory as they showed growth of 12.96 percent reaching SR2.78 billion compared to SR2.46 billion in the year-ago period. The statement credited the sales growth to the performance of its existing and new branches. It also mentioned that it benefited from better cash management techniques and greater activity in its leasing business. Its share price closed lower by 0.85 percent at SR143.80. Saudi Airlines Catering Co. saw its net profit soar by 61.76 percent to SR57.1 million in the first quarter of 2023 compared to SR35.3 million in the prior year. Revenue rose by 32.18 percent to reach SR521.6 million compared to SR394.6 million in the first quarter of 2022. The report listed multiple business lines that led to the aforementioned results including inflight, remote sites and railway catering services. Its share price sold off by 7.37 percent to close at SR89.90. Saudi Co. for Hardware, also known as SACO, reported a loss of SR16.52 million in the first quarter of 2023 compared to a profit of SR1.11 million in the previous year. Revenue declined 24.8 percent to SR240.27 million from SR319.51 million at the end of the first quarter of 2022. The company explained that its losses were simply due to a drop in sales. Its share price closed lower by 2.47 percent at SR34.