This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on May 13, 2016.

KUALA LUMPUR: S P Setia Bhd, which is poised for RM3 billion worth of launches in the financial year 2016 (FY16), recorded a net profit of RM123.39 million, or 4.69 sen per share, in the first quarter ended March 31 (1QFY16).

The property developer said revenue stood at RM908.5 million, on the back of a 86% take-up rate of its two projects in Setia Alam launched in 1QFY16 with a gross development value (GDV) of RM128 million.

The group did not provide corresponding comparative figures for its 1QFY16 results as it had changed its financial year end from Oct 31 to Dec 31 last year.

S P Setia president and chief executive officer Datuk Khor Chap Jen said the group’s 3-storey terraced house and three-storey linked semi-detached house projects in Setia Alam achieved a good take-up rate of 86%, indicating that underlying demand is still strong.

“Moving forward, the group has identified approximately 13 phases with a GDV of RM3 billion to be rolled out under the Setia 10:90 scheme as part of the sales initiative for FY16,” he said in the group’s filing with Bursa Malaysia.

“We are confident that the group is on track to achieve our RM4 billion sales target by December 2016,” he said.

S P Setia’s upcoming major launches in FY16 are: Setia Eco Templer in Selayang, Selangor, with a GDV of RM269 million; Setia EcoHill 2 in Semenyih, Selangor (RM512 million); Carnegie in Melbourne, Australia (A$31 million [RM91.53 million]); KL Eco City in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur (RM444 million); Setia Sky Ville in Penang (RM477 million); Setia Sky Seputeh (Tower A) in Taman Seputeh, Kuala Lumpur (RM406 million); Setia Trio in Klang (RM351 million); and Setia Business Park II in Johor (RM127 million).

Khor said despite a challenging market environment in FY16, the group remains resilient with its diversified range of new launches, ranging from affordable homes to apartments, worth RM4.7 billion in strategic locations to be launched from 2QFY16 onwards.

He said the group’s unbilled sales of RM8.6 billion as at March 31, which will be delivered within the next few years, will yield good profit visibility for the group and augur well with the challenging market conditions the company is facing.

“The board is confident that with the group’s strong brand name and large pipeline of unbilled sales, prospects remain strong with execution and timely delivery being the group’s key focus areas for the coming years,” he added.

S P Setia shares closed unchanged yesterday at RM3.20, with a market capitalisation of RM8.44 billion.