KUALA LUMPUR (April 29): Kumpulan Perangsang Selangor Bhd (KPS) gained as much as 12% as the market reacted to its announcement of a special dividend, following the completion of its disposal of its 30% stake in Syarikat Pengeluar Air Sungai Selangor Sdn Bhd (Splash).

At 3.56pm, KPS was up 13 sen or 8.61% at RM1.64 with some 11.86 million shares exchanged. Earlier, the counter gained as much as 11.9% to RM1.69 and was among the top gainers on the bourse.

Last Friday, the group announced a special dividend of RM175.19 million or 32.6 sen per share, which will be paid on May 28. Its share will trade ex-dividend on May 13.

The special dividend comes in addition to its final dividend of 4.25 sen per share.

The group had indicated last year that it was considering three options as to how the proceeds from the Splash divestment would be utilised, one of which was for a special dividend. The other two options were paring down borrowings and funding future business expansion.

In August last year, Pengurusan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd made an offer to buy out Splash from KPS's 30%-owned associate company, Syarikat Pengeluar Air Selangor Holdings Bhd (Splash Holdings), for RM2.55 billion in cash.

Gamuda owns a 40% stake in Splash Holdings while Sweet Water SPV Sdn Bhd, a private vehicle of businessman Tan Sri Wan Azmi Wan Hamzah, owns the remaining 30%.

On April 24, Splash Holdings had received RM1.9 billion from Air Selangor being the first tranche payment for the Splash divestment, from which KPS is entitled to RM570 million.