KUALA LUMPUR: Globetronics Technology Bhd’s net profit rose 21.6% to RM17.15 million in the first quarter ended March (1QFY15) from RM14.1 million a year ago, on higher volume loadings from its customers.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia yesterday, the semiconductor-based products manufacturer also attributed the improved results to better economies of scale from the productivity improvement on the cost control programme that was undertaken by the company.

“The Malaysia and Singapore segments recorded healthy sales and net profit improvement as compared with the last corresponding period,” it noted.

Revenue for 1Q grew 6.3% year-on-year to RM88.7 million from RM83.4 million.

The improved numbers gave Globetronics (fundamental: 3; valuation: 1.7) a basic earnings per share of 6.1 sen for the quarter under review, compared with 5.04 sen a year ago. It also declared a 1Q dividend of 13 sen.

“Moving forward, the group will continue to focus on escalating up the value chain and riding on the research and development initiatives in new product design and development. The group will also continue to step up efforts in improving the efficiency and cost reduction measures in its operations to achieve the necessary competitive edge in the market,” it said.

Globetronics’ share price has been climbing steadily in the last three months. It reached a 52-week high of RM6.19 on April 24.

It closed at RM6.09 yesterday, giving it a market capitalisation of RM1.71 billion.

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. Go to www.theedgemarkets.com for more details on a company’s financial dashboard.

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on April 29, 2015.