KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 29): Based on corporate announcements and news flow today, companies that may be in focus tomorrow (Wednesday, Sept 30) could include: Berjaya Corp, George Kent, Shell, Al-Salam REIT, Kim Loong, RHBCap, VS Industry, Multi Sports and Prolexus.
Berjaya Corp Bhd saw its net profit for the first quarter ended July 31, 2015 (1QFY16) surge almost seven-fold year-on-year to RM56.13 million, from RM8.28 million previously, primarily due to a higher share of results from associates under its subsidiaries, and a RM15 million disposal gain of a subsidiary.
The better financials were also propped up by a RM13.95 million gain on the remeasurement of its equity interest in REDtone International Bhd.
Besides that, 1QFY15 also saw a wholly-owned unit aggressively closing down its non-performing stores, to reduce operating costs. Consequently, there were higher impairments that year, it said in an email response to The Edge Financial Daily today.
Meanwhile, revenue for the latest quarter came in 14.06% lower at RM2.14 billion, from RM2.49 billion in 1QFY15, due to the full effects Berjaya Auto Bhd’s (BAuto) deconsolidation, and higher finance costs.
The group declared a one sen dividend for the FY15, payable on Dec 30.
George Kent (M) Bhd reported a 39% increase in net profit for its second quarter ended July 31, 2015 (2QFY16), from a year earlier, on higher contribution from its engineering and water-metering units.
Its 2QFY16 net profit rose to RM8.47 million, from RM6.1 million. Revenue climbed to RM114.66 million, from RM75.04 million.
For 1HFY16, George Kent reported higher net profit at RM18.34 million versus RM12.57 million a year earlier. Revenue for 1HFY16 had also come in higher at RM173.69 million, compared to RM139.9 million.
During 2QFY16, the company declared an interim dividend of two sen per share.
The ex-date falls on Oct 13 this year, while payment is on Nov 12.
Shell Refining Company (Federation of Malaya) Bhd (Shell Malaysia) revealed today, its transformation programme for its upstream division, which will see a reduction of 1,300 jobs over the next two years. The group has a total workforce of about 6,500 staff.
The programme aims to improve efficiency and removing complexity to become a more agile and competitive company.
“We are strengthening our organisation by prioritising productivity and efficiency, without compromising on safety and reliability. We will emerge from this process as a more nimble, resilient and competitive player in the Malaysian oil and gas industry,” Shell Malaysia’s chairman, Iain John Lo, said in a statement today.
Newly-listed Al-Salam Real Estate Investment Trust (Al-Salam REIT) is targeting to acquire at least three new assets within the next two years.
Al-Salam REIT chief executive officer Datuk Kamaruzzaman bin Abu Kassim said the assets will be a combination of retail and offices within the vicinity of Kuala Lumpur and the state of Johor.
Kamaruzzaman noted that part of the proceeds from the group’s initial public offering (IPO) would be utilised to acquire new assets.
Kim Loong Resources Bhd saw its net profit for the second quarter ended July 31, 2015 climb 23.4% to RM22.35 million or 7.18 sen per share, from RM18.12 million or 5.85 sen per share previously.
Revenue for the quarter grew marginally by 8.2% to RM213.36 million, from RM197.28 million previously.
This was attributable to the company’s milling operations, which experienced higher processing quality, leading to the improvement in revenues and segment profits for the quarter.
However, half year net profit sank 20% to RM37.13 million or 11.93 sen per share for the cumulative six months ended July 31, from RM46.48 million or 15.02 sen per share a year ago; while revenue declined 9.2% to RM376.23 million, from RM414.27 million previously.
“The lower revenue and profit for the current quarter and year-to-date were mainly due to lower fresh fruit bunch (FFB) price,” said Kim Loong.
RHB Capital Bhd (RHB Cap)'s chief executive officer, Datuk Khairussaleh Ramli, said it is too premature to say that Aabar Investments PJS would not subscribe to the banking group’s rights issue.
“We don’t know what their decision is; we have to wait until the book closure. At the moment, it is too premature to say that they will not participate; the book closure still has many weeks to go,” said Khairussaleh.
Reuters reported yesterday that the Abu Dhabi state fund, RHB Cap’s second largest shareholder holding 21.09% equity stake, may not participate in cash call, which is priced at RM4.82 per share, as its existing investment in the country’s fourth largest bank has been shrinking, due to the sharp fall in share price and ringgit.
Khairussaleh was speaking to the media, after the launch of RHB banking group’s exclusive partnership with Startupbootcamp FinTech today.
When asked if the other shareholders would be able to take up the rights issue, should Aabar decide against it, Khairussaleh replied that RHB Cap has underwriters ready to absorb any unsubscribed portions.
“As far as we are concerned, we should still get our money. That’s the key thing,” emphasised Khairussaleh.
RHB Cap’s largest shareholder is EPF, holding 41.58% equity interest, while OSK Holdings holds 9.97%.
VS Industry Bhd saw its net profit jump 44% to RM52.70 million or 4.79 sen per share for the fourth quarter ended July 31, 2015 (4QFY15), from RM36.50 million or four sen per share a year earlier.
The earnings improvement was despite a 5% contraction in revenue to RM506.84 million in the current quarter, from RM534.45 million in 4QFY14.
The company declared an interim single tier dividend of 1.2 sen per share for the year ended July 31, 2015.
The group saw a net foreign exchange gain of RM24.44 million during the quarter, amid the strengthening of the US dollar.
China-based Multi Sports Holdings Ltd's substantial shareholder Erwin Selvarajah Peter Selvarajah acquired an additional 11.12 million shares in the sport shoes sole maker, raising his shareholding to 9.99%.
Multi Sports said Selvarajah, who is also the president and chief executive officer of Permanis Sdn Bhd, acquired the block of 11.12 million shares in open market, increasing his shareholding to 51.7 million shares or 9.99% stake, making him the second largest shareholder in the sports shoes sole manufacturer.
The largest shareholder is Power Wide Holdings Ltd, which owns a 34.03% equity interest in the company.
Prolexus Bhd’s net profit for the fourth quarter ended July 31, 2015, increased 25.6% to RM7.19 million or 6.66 sen per share, from RM5.72 million or 5.43 sen per share a year ago.
Revenue climbed 33.7% to RM119.99 million, from RM89.72 million a year ago.
Meanwhile, full year revenue totalled to RM350.34 million, increasing 19.1% from RM294.11 million a year ago.
Full year net profits also gained 16.8% to RM21.59 million, from RM18.48 million in the previous year.
Prolexus attributed the enhanced profits and revenue to better performance of the apparel division. Notably, Prolexus is a contract manufacturer of sports apparels for global brands, principally Nike.
(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.)