KUALA LUMPUR (June 2): ECM Libra Financial Group Bhd's share price almost hit limit up after the group proposed to distribute RM320.1 million to shareholders. The company also plans to split its RM1 shares and merge them into units of 50 sen each.

At 9.55am, ECM Libra (fundamental: 1.35; valuation: 1.65) rose as much as 31 sen or 29.5% to RM1.36 to be the second-largest gainer across the bourse. The stock saw 2.57 million shares done.

ECM Libra told Bursa Malaysia yesterday it would distribute "excess cash" to shareholders via a share capital reduction and special dividend.

"The proposed distribution exercise will be in the form of cash and/or a combination of cash and distribution-in-specie of ordinary shares and/or warrants of Eastern & Oriental Bhd (E&O)," ECM Libra said.

The E&O securities are held under ECM Libra's Libra Strategic Opportunity Fund.

According to The Edge Research, ECM Libra shares were traded at a price-earnings ratio of 9.96 times. Bloomberg data shows that the sector average is about 15 times.

(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.)