KUALA LUMPUR (May 27): Jaya Tiasa Holdings Bhd saw its third quarter ended March 31 plunge 59% on lower fresh fruit bunch (FFB) and crude palm oil (CPO) average selling price and sales volume.

According to its filling on Bursa Malaysia, the group’s net profit plunged to RM19.18 million in 3QFY15 from RM47.11 million the year before. Revenue was marginally higher by 4% at RM793.35 million from RM762.85 million a year earlier.

Jaya Tiasa, which is also involved in the timber business, said in its notes on Bursa that its FFB selling price fell 12% while sales volume dropped 49%.

CPO on the other hand saw a 10% drop in average selling price and its sales volume fell 16%. It also added that the group saw a 33% increase in FFB production cost due to a 25% reduction in FFB production volume.

Meanwhile, the increase in revenue was contributed by a 12% and 33% rise in log and veneer sales volume, respectively and an 8% increase in average selling price of log.

Moving forward, Jaya Tiasa (fundamental: 0.30; valuation: 1.40) said that the outlook for the timber division is expected to remain stable due to the limited log supply coupled with a strong US dollar which is favourable to its export sales.

“As we are entering into high crop season, FFB production is expected to pick up which will lead to a lower FFB production cost. However, significant increase in the near-term CPO price would be limited due to higher inventory level resulting from the seasonal high crop production,” it added.

(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.)