KUALA LUMPUR (May 5): Hartalega Holdings Bhd reported a higher net profit of RM55 million in the fourth quarter ended Mar 31, 2015, against RM49.3 million in the previous corresponding quarter.

The higher net profit came on the back of higher sales and adjustment of tax rates, the glove manufacturer said in a statement.

Hartalega (fundamental: 2.6; valuation: 0.5) declared a third interim dividend of three sen per share for its financial year ended Mar 31, 2015. This raised the total dividend for the year to 13 sen per share compared with 14.5 sen per share the year before.

Its revenue for the quarter stood higher at RM305.1 million from RM280.3 million a year earlier.

The increase in revenue was attributable to the start-up of the group’s Next Generation Integrated Glove Manufacturing Complex (NGC) facilities in December last year, it said.

Hartalega said to date, there are eight production lines operating in the NGC, equivalent to an additional capacity of 2.9 billion pieces of gloves per annum.

For the full-year, Hartalega recorded a lower net profit of RM209.6 million, or 27 sen per share, against RM232.8 million, or 31.3 sen per share in the year before.

The group said operating profit margin was impacted by lower average selling price as a result of declining raw material costs and more competitive selling price. It was also impacted by the start-up cost of NGC.

Revenue for the year grew 3.5% to RM1.145 billion from RM1.107 billion last year due to higher sales volume.

On prospects ahead, Hartalega managing director Kuan Mun Leong said when the NGC comes fully on-stream, the group will be able to strengthen its position given the significant increase in production capacity and improved capabilities.

“Taking a long-term perspective, prospects are bright for the group and we remain confident about growing our market share in the coming years ahead,” he said.

Hartalega gained six sen to RM8.22, giving it a market capitalisation of RM6.59 billion.

(Note: The Edge Research's fundamental score reflects a company’s profitability and balance sheet strength, calculated based on historical numbers. The valuation score determines if a stock is attractively valued or not, also based on historical numbers. A score of 3 suggests strong fundamentals and attractive valuations.)