KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Resources Corp Bhd (MRCB) swung to a net loss of RM5.28 million for its fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2014 (4QFY14) from a net profit of RM2.22 million a year ago, mainly due to the group’s share of results of a joint venture which incurred losses due to charge out of finance and start-up costs.

MRCB (fundamental: 0.45; valuation: 0.60), however, saw its revenue jump 32% to RM487.17 million from RM369.0 million in 4QFY13. Loss per share for 4QFY14 was 0.3 sen compared with earnings per share (EPS) of 0.13 sen a year ago.

For the 12-month period (FY14), MRCB managed to return to a profit, reporting a net profit of RM152.63 million compared to a net loss of RM109.13 million in FY13. EPS was 8.93 compared to a loss per share of 7.38 sen in FY13.

MRCB attributed the better FY14 performance to strong growth from the group’s property development division and the disposal gain from the sale of investment in the Duta-Ulu Klang Expressway (Duke) which was recognised in 2QFY14. 

Revenue also soared 61% year-on-year to RM1.51 billion from RM940.91 million. “The higher revenue was mainly driven by strong growth from the group’s property development division which is currently actively developing 9 Seputeh in Jalan Klang Lama, PJ Sentral in Petaling Jaya and the Q Sentral Office and The Sentral Residences at KL Sentral.

“This is followed by the engineering and construction division which is currently undertaking the ongoing construction of the Ampang Line LRT extension, Kelana Jaya extension line, river rehabilitation project and transmission line projects,” said MRCB in a filing with Bursa Malaysia yesterday. 

Going forward, the group is optimistic about performing satisfactorily in FY15, as it expects to launch more projects.

“In line with the 4.5% projected growth of the Malaysian economy in 2015 and the group’s ongoing development, projects in prime locations will continue to be key revenue drivers, contributing positively to the group’s profitability,” it said. MRCB shares closed one sen or 0.7% lower at RM1.40 yesterday, bringing its market capitalisation to RM2.52 billion.

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. Go to www.theedgemarkets.com for more details on a company’s financial dashboard.

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on February 24, 2015.