KUALA LUMPUR (July 6): AEON Credit Service (M) Bhd’s net profit ballooned by 521% to RM163.09 million for the first financial quarter ended May 31, 2021 (1QFY22) from RM26.28 million recorded in the previous corresponding quarter.
The substantially higher profit was mainly underpinned by the big drop in operating expenses, which shrunk to RM158.6 million from RM277.5 million a year ago. On top of that, the group's other income, which comprises bad debts recovered, insurance commission and interest or profit income from deposits with licensed financial institutions, increased to RM49.1 million in 1QFY22 versus RM17.14 million previously.
Earnings per share shot up to 63.88 sen against 10.29 sen previously, its Bursa Malaysia filing showed.
The group’s quarterly revenue rose marginally by 5.41% to RM410.97 million from RM389.88 million a year ago due to increase in transaction and financing volume.
AEON Credit, however, did not declare any dividend to its shareholders for the quarter.
On a quarterly basis, the group’s net profit grew by 43.4% from RM113.72 million, while revenue was up marginally by 1.1% from RM406.35 million.
Moving forward, the group said it will continue to closely monitor and assess the inherent credit risks in its financing portfolio, with proactive attention focused on enhancement of asset quality, prudent cost management and improvement in financial and operational efficiencies by leveraging its positive business fundamentals.
AEON Credit also said it managed to recover its sales and business performance despite the challenges in 1QFY22.
“The company is committed to strive in building its business sustainability agenda and will be continuously investing in information technology to drive the digitalisation of its operations.
“Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the company expects to be able to maintain its financial performance for the financial year ending Feb 28, 2022,” it said.
Shares in AEON Credit fell two sen to RM11.78, giving it a market capitalisation of RM3.01 billion.