KUALA LUMPUR (March 25): Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd's net profit rose 20.81% to RM167.83 million in the fourth quarter ended Jan 31, 2021 (4QFY21), from RM138.92 million a year earlier, on lower net financing costs and tax expenses.

Earnings per share increased to 3.22 sen from 2.66 sen, the group's filing with Bursa Malaysia showed.

Quarterly revenue fell 9.54% to RM1.11 billion, from RM1.23 billion in 4QFY20, underpinned by a decrease in subscription and advertising revenue in the period.

On a quarter-on-quarter basis, Astro's net profit rose 2% from RM164.53 million in 3QFY21, while revenue inched up 0.15% from RM1.1 billion.

The group declared a fourth interim dividend of 1.5 sen per share, to be paid on April 23, as well as a final dividend of 2.5 sen per share.

The group's full-year net profit declined 17.62% to RM539.85 million, from RM655.3 million in FY20.

Hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, revenue for FY21 fell 11.24% to RM4.36 billion, from RM4.91 billion in FY20.

Commenting on the financial results, group chief executive officer Henry Tan said Astro will continue to cost optimise, reprioritise capital expenditure and actively manage its capital to further strengthen its balance sheet.

"With the latest 'cloud recording' and 'play from start' features, our connected 4K-UHD Ultra Box (installations) recorded a fivefold increase to 230,000 and on-demand videos streamed tripled to 222 million in FY21.

"We also recently introduced Ulti Box, a high-definition (HD) variant set-top-box to bring connected features to more households," he said.

Tan said Astro is upgrading all standard definition channels to HD.

"Astro GO, enhanced with 'pre-access' and 'download-to-go' features, saw an increase in its monthly active users by 13% year-on-year to 1.3 million, while its average weekly viewing time rose 8% to 187 minutes," he added.

Moving forward, Astro said any reimposition or tightening of Movement Control Orders to curb Covid-19 outbreaks may impact advertising and commercial revenues.

"Our intent is to offer a great entertainment experience across all screens for everyone, whether individuals, homes or enterprises," said Tan.

Shares of Astro Malaysia closed unchanged at 92 sen, giving the group a market capitalisation of RM4.8 billion.