KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 12): Shares of Key ASIC Bhd hit a five-year high of 31 sen after the company yesterday said it was currently in the midst of undertaking a corporate exercise.

The counter was among the top active stocks, and increased three sen or 11.11% to 30 sen at 11.50am, after rising to its intraday high of 32 sen earlier. About 97.4 million shares were traded, valuing the company at RM276 million. Year to date, the stock has seen a return of 275%.

In a filing to Bursa Malaysia yesterday, the manufacturer of chips and system products for Internet of Things (IoT) said the relevant details of the corporate exercise have not been finalised at this juncture.

"The company will make the necessary announcements to Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd in compliance with the Main Market Listing Requirements of Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd in the event the company proceeds with the said corporate exercise," it said.

Key ASIC has been in the red since 2009 and based on its latest Annual Report, the group has narrowed its net loss to RM9.99 million for the seventeen-month financial period ended May 31, 2017 from RM13.93 million in the previous year.

There were no year-on-year comparative figures as the group had changed its financial year end from Dec 31 to May 31 in April last year.

Malaysia's government investment arm Khazanah Nasional Bhd remains a substantial shareholder of Key ASIC, with a 22.09% stake as at Sept 6. Meanwhile, Taiwanese Chang Tao-Chun together with Taiwanese/Canadian Chang Li-Ping and Fang Chun-Jung own 36.6% in Key ASIC.