KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 28): Based on corporate announcements and news flow today, stocks in focus on Thursday (Nov 29) may include: UEM Sunrise Bhd, Hong Leong Bank Bhd, Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd, FGV Holdings Bhd, Sapura Energy Bhd, Bermaz Auto Bhd, Aeon Co (M) Bhd, Affin Hwang Bank Bhd, Prestariang Bhd, Sarawak Oil Palms Bhd and Iris Corp Bhd.

UEM Sunrise Bhd recorded an 85% fall in net profit to RM21.17 million in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2018 (3QFY18) against RM142.85 million a year ago, owing to fewer land sales.

Quarterly revenue also nearly halved to RM431 million versus RM846 million in 3QFY17 when it notched a number of large land sales, in particular the Alderbridge worth RM371 million, as well as in Iskandar Puteri.

Net profit for the cumulative nine months, however, jumped 66.3% to RM260.25 million from RM156.46 million a year ago, on significantly higher contribution from land sales in Iskandar Puteri, higher contribution from an international project, gain from project development cost savings and lower operating expenses.

Revenue was 17% lower at RM1.29 billion from RM1.55 billion, mainly due to the completion of Teega, Arcoris, Bayu Angkasa and Residensi 22 in the prior year, while in the current period, the successful new launches of Solaris Parq, Serimbun and Kiara Kasih are still at the initial stage of development.

Hong Leong Bank Bhd's net profit for the first financial quarter ended Sept 30, 2018 (1QFY19) rose 10.63% to RM706.92 million from RM638.97 million a year ago, on the back of robust growth in non-interest income.

Quarterly revenue rose to RM1.25 billion from RM1.18 billion previously.

Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd’s (HLFG) net profit for the first quarter ended Sept 30, 2018 rose 11.07% to RM505.69 million from RM455.25 million a year earlier, on higher non-interest income.

Revenue for the quarter rose to RM1.38 billion from RM1.28 billion previously. It also declared a first interim dividend of 13 sen per share, payable on Dec 27.

FGV Holdings Bhd posted a net loss of RM849.26 million in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2018 (2QFY19) compared with a net profit of RM41.53 million a year ago, mainly due to impairment charges amounting to RM788 million, with APL accounting for 65% of the total impairments for the current quarter.

The group's quarterly performance was also dragged down by the plantation sector, which incurred a loss of RM849.8 million in 3QFY18 compared with a profit of RM132.4 million a year ago.

Quarterly revenue also declined 22.9% to RM3.19 billion in 3QFY18 from RM4.14 billion a year ago.

For the cumulative nine months (9MFY18), the group posted a net loss of RM871.15 million compared with a net profit of RM80.49 million a year ago, while revenue fell 19.2% to RM10.23 billion from RM12.67 billion in 9MFY17.

Sapura Energy Bhd’s wholly-owned subsidiaries Sapura Fabrication Sdn Bhd and Sapura Saudi Arabia have been selected by Saudi Arabian Oil Co (Saudi Aramco) for its long-term agreement (LTA) programme.

The programme covers engineering, procurement, fabrication, transportation and installation contracts to support Saudi Aramco's offshore projects.

Sapura Energy president and group chief executive officer Tan Sri Shahril Shamsuddin said the win is a major milestone for Sapura Energy in line with its strategy to grow the business and deepen its presence in the Middle East.

Bermaz Auto Bhd has scrapped its plans to list its subsidiary, Bermaz Auto Philippines Inc (BAP), on the main board of the Philippine Stock Exchange.

The decision was made after considering the current challenging automotive market conditions in the Philippines.

Aeon Co (M) Bhd’s net profit rose 15% to RM13.85 million in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2018 (3QFY18) against RM12.08 million a year ago, on higher revenue on the back of better merchandise assortment.

Quarterly revenue grew 10.8% to RM1.06 billion from RM961.44 million in 3QFY17.

For the cumulative nine months, the group saw net profit slip 21.7% to RM51.58 million from RM65.83 million a year ago, even though revenue was 6.41% higher at RM3.24 billion.

Affin Bank Bhd’s net profit more than tripled to RM144.56 million in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2018 (3QFY18) from RM39.9 million a year ago, on higher net fee and commission income, net gain on financial instruments, Islamic banking income and other operating income.

This resulted in a higher earnings per share of 7.44 sen for 3QFY18 compared with 2.36 sen for 3QFY17.

Quarterly net income rose 51.3% to RM496.25 million from RM327.95 million a year ago.

For the cumulative nine months ended Sept 30, 2018 (9MFY18), Affin Bank reported a 44.7% increase in net profit to RM359.34 million from RM248.32 million a year ago, while net income rose 43% to RM1.47 billion from RM1.03 billion in 9MFY17.

Prestariang Bhd has scrapped plans to create an integrated education platform (IEP) with Alibaba Cloud, the cloud computing arm of China's Alibaba Group, and Singapore-based Conversant Solutions Pte Ltd.

Prestariang said the Memorandum of Understanding has since lapsed, but it will continue to explore mutually beneficial business relationship with the parties in the education market.

Sarawak Oil Palms Bhd’s net profit fell 68.6% to RM17.73 million in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2018 (3QFY18) from RM56.51 million a year ago, on lower revenue.

Quarterly revenue dropped 27.8% to RM870.34 million from RM1.2 billion in 3QFY17, due to lower volume of palm products transacted and lower palm products average realised prices.

Net profit for the cumulative nine months ended Sept 30, 2018 (9MFY18) was lower by 72% at RM54.33 million versus RM190.71 million a year ago while revenue fell 27.6% to RM2.55 billion from RM3.52 billion in 9MFY17.

Iris Corp Bhd posted its second straight profitable quarter in the second financial quarter ended Sept 30, 2018 (2QFY19), with a net profit of RM4.19 million compared with a net loss of RM14.68 million a year ago, mainly due to the absence of recognition of litigation cases’ settlement totaling of RM17.9 million in 2QFY18.

Quarterly revenue, however, fell 31.8% to RM75.11 million from RM110.05 million a year ago on lower contribution from the trusted identification and information technology business segment.

For the cumulative six months ended Sept 30, 2018 (1HFY19), the group posted a net profit of RM12.87 million compared with a net loss of RM9.47 million a year ago, even though revenue dropped 28.5% to RM150.92 million from RM211.1 million in 1HFY18.