KUALA LUMPUR (May 12): Based on corporate announcements and news flow today, companies that may be in focus tomorrow (Friday, May 13) could include the following: Vivocom, Media Prima, Box-Pak, Tanjung Offshore, S P Setia, IJM Corp and MRCB.
Vivocom Intl Holdings Bhd's net profit for the first quarter ended March 31, 2016 (1QFY16) jumped 27 times to RM25.12 million or 0.81 sen a share from RM923,000 or 0.09 sen a share a year ago, driven by the group's construction business.
Its bourse filing today showed revenue for 1QFY16 rocketed 20 times to RM141.54 million from RM7.04 million.
Vivocom said the construction segment contributed 88.9% or 125.81 million to the group's total revenue in 1QFY16.
In a separate statement, Vivocom executive director Choo Seng Choon said the board of directors is "confident and optimistic" of the group's outlook, and pledged to secure more projects in the foreseeable future.
Choo also revealed that the group is looking at "various ways" to reward shareholders, naming bonus shares or free warrants as the possibilities.
Media Prima Bhd's net profit for the first quarter ended March 31, 2016 dropped 8.67% to RM17.25 million or 1.55 sen per share from RM18.88 million or 1.7 sen per share last year, as revenue fell 7.68% to RM304.06 million.
The weaker financial performance was mainly due to the decline in revenue in print media by 18% year-on-year (y-o-y), as a result of lower advertising and newspaper sales. This is also the same with its content creation segment, which suffered from an external sales contraction of 25% y-o-y, due to seasonal factors.
Box-Pak (M) Bhd's net profit for the first quarter ended March 31 (1QFY16) sank 45.56% to RM1.37 million from RM2.52 million a year ago, dragged by higher operating expenses and finance costs.
The corrugated carton boxes manufacturer's earnings per share fell to 2.29 sen from 4.21 sen in 1QFY15.
Nevertheless, thanks to the group's Vietnam operations, Box-Pak's revenue for 1QFY16 grew by 25.29% to RM120.42 million from RM96.12 million in 1QFY15.
Box-Pak said the continued volatility in the foreign currency exchange rate remains a challenge, as some of the materials it sources are denominated in the US dollar.
Tanjung Offshore Bhd's subsidiary Gas Generator (M) Sdn Bhd (GGM) has won a contract from PTS Resources Sdn Bhd worth RM17.86 million to supply and commission battery systems.
Its statement today said the three-year contract is to supply, deliver, install, test, and commission batteries including related engineering services and accessories to PTS Resources, which is a "good balance" to the group's revenue against the backdrop of challenging oil and gas environment.
The award marks the group's first venture into the battery business.
S P Setia Bhd, which is poised for RM3 billion worth of launches in financial year 2016 (FY16), recorded a net profit of RM123.39 million or 4.69 sen per share in the first quarter ended March 31, 2016 (1QFY16).
In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, the property developer said revenue stood at RM908.5 million, on the back of an 86% take-up rate at its two projects in Setia Alam launched in 1QFY16 with a gross development value of RM128 million, called Edulis and Retusa.
Last year, S P Setia had changed its financial year end from Oct 31 to Dec 31. It did not provide corresponding comparative figures for its 1QFY16 results.
S P Setia president and CEO Datuk Khor Chap Jen said despite a challenging market environment this year, the group remains resilient with its diversified range of new launches, ranging from affordable to apartments, worth RM4.7 billion in strategic locations to be launched in the second quarter onwards.
He said the group's unbilled sales of RM8.6 billion as at March 31, 2016, which will be delivered within the next few years, will yield good profit visibility for the group and augurs well with the challenging market conditions the company is facing.
IJM Corp Bhd and Malaysian Resources Corp Bhd (MRCB) have been awarded work package contracts worth RM2.1 billion by Mass Rapid Transit Corp Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp) for works related to the construction of the MRT Sungai Buloh-Serdang-Putrajaya line, which is also referred to as the SSP Line or MRT2.
In a statement yesterday, MRT said it awarded four contracts for the construction of the new line, comprising two viaduct work packages and two system work packages.
IJM Construction Sdn Bhd, the construction arm of IJM Corp, was awarded the second largest contract, work package V203 (valued at RM1.47 billion), with works comprising the construction and completion of the 4.6km viaduct guideway and other associated works from Jinjang to Jalan Ipoh North Portal.
MRCB was awarded with work package V210, worth RM648 million, for the construction and completion of the 2.6km viaduct guideway and other associated works from Persiaran APEC in Cyberjaya to Putrajaya Sentral.
Meanwhile, the largest package, systems work package SY203 that is valued at RM1.62 billion, was awarded to the HAP Consortium comprising Apex Communications Sdn Bhd, and Korea's Hyundai Rotem Co and Posco Engineering Co Ltd.
The fourth award was for systems work package SY201, worth RM458.02 million, for the engineering, procurement, construction, testing and commissioning of the signalling and train control system. It went to a consortium comprising Bombardier (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd and Global Rail Sdn Bhd.