KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 24): Sarawak State infrastructure facilitator Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd (CMSB) saw its net profit for the second quarter ended June 30, 2018 (2QFY18) leap by 59.5% to RM91.63 million from RM57.43 million mainly attributed to the increase in share of results of its associates.

Earnings per share stood notably higher at 8.53 sen compared with 5.35 sen per share in the previous year's corresponding quarter.

According to its filing with Bursa Malaysia today, quarterly revenue rose 15.4% to RM395.28 million from RM342.55 million in 2QFY17.

It said second quarter results were substantially higher than the previous year's same quarter due to the turnaround of its associate OM Materials (Sarawak) Sdn Bhd since the third quarter of 2017.

For the first half of the year (1HFY18), CMSB's net profit surged 56.8% to RM130.6 million from RM83.3 million recorded for the same period last year, while revenue increased 15.4% to RM750.27 million from RM650.23 million.

In a separate statement, CMSB said the significant improvement in the group’s financial performance for 1HFY18 was mainly due to increase in the share of results of associates namely OM Materials (Sarawak) Sdn Bhd, SACOFA Sdn Bhd, KKB Engineering Berhad and Kenanga Investment Bank Berhad.

Collectively, CMSB said the aforementioned associates recorded a profit before tax of RM74.88 million during 1HFY18 compared to a loss of RM7.48 million in 1HFY17.

"The main contributor to this astounding performance is the strong turnaround at OM Materials (Sarawak) where a PATNCI (profit after tax and non-controlling interests) of RM48.48 million was registered (for CMSB’s 25% share) compared to a loss of RM26.21 million for the corresponding period in 2017," it said.

CMSB added that the strong performance by OM Materials (Sarawak) is expected to be sustained if ferrosilicon and manganese alloy prices and production outputs are maintained at their current levels.

Its group chief executive officer — corporate, Datuk Isaac Lugun, said the company's growth strategy for its strategic investments have begun to come to fruition.

"The aim of this growth strategy is for our traditional core businesses and our strategic investments to equally contribute to double the group’s earnings in the next three to five years," he said.

"We are confident that CMSB will continue to maintain its strong growth potential and will remain resilient in spite of expected continuing headwinds," Isaac added.

CMSB shares today closed down 1 sen or 0.28% to RM3.50 for a market capitalisation of RM3.75 billion.