KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 28): CIMB IB Research has maintained its “Hold” rating on UMW Holdings Bhd at RM5.82 with a higher target price (TP) of RM6.36 (from RM6.10) and said UMW’s FY18 core net profit beat house and Bloomberg consensus forecast by 23% and 17%, respectively, due to higher-than-expected margin in automotive division.

In a note Feb 27, the research house said UMW expects stronger sales volume growth from Toyota and Perodua in 2019F, driven by new model launches and capacity expansion at Bukit Raja.

“Raise our FY19-20F EPS by 4-5%. Maintain Hold with a higher RM6.36 TP,” it said.