Westport, Pharmaniaga, Lotte Chemical, Affin, AirAsia, TNB, AmBank, Uzma, Maybank, PavREIT, Axiata, Eita Resources, LKL International, Tasco and China Automobile Parts

Westport, Pharmaniaga, Lotte Chemical, Affin, AirAsia, TNB, AmBank, Uzma, Maybank, PavREIT, Axiata, Eita Resources, LKL International, Tasco and China Automobile Parts

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 27): Based on corporate announcements and news flow on Thursday, companies that may be in focus on Friday (Jan 28) include Westports Holdings Bhd, Pharmaniaga Bhd, Lotte Chemical Titan Bhd (LCT), Affin Bank Bhd, AirAsia Group Bhd, Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB), AMMB Holdings Bhd (AmBank), Uzma Bhd, Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank), Pavilion Real Estate Investment Trust (PavREIT), Axiata Group Bhd, Eita Resources Bhd, LKL International Bhd, Tasco Bhd and China Automobile Parts Holdings Ltd (CAP).  

Westports Holdings Bhd’s net profit for the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2021 rose 36% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM222.88 million from RM163.49 million, due to higher container revenue and progressive insurance reimbursement for the vessel incident which damaged two ship-to-shore cranes and a berthing container vessel in 2019. The port operator said revenue for the quarter dipped 7% y-o-y to RM503.89 million from RM541.54 million previously, as container throughput was adversely affected by the massive flash floods in Klang Valley late last year.

Pharmaniaga Bhd chairman Datuk Seri Shazalli Ramly will be redesignated as non-independent director, with Datuk Seri Zainal Abidin Mohd Rafique to take the former’s place. The incoming chairman Zainal Abidin, who is the Bukit Bintang UMNO division chief, holds several directorships currently, including in Boustead Petroleum Marketing Sdn Bhd, Clock Tower Hotel Sdn Bhd, and QI-pmc Sdn Bhd.

Lotte Chemical Titan Bhd’s (LCT) net profit for the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2021 (4QFY21) surged 283% to RM186.84 million quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q) from RM48.84 million, mainly due to tax income arising from reversal of tax expenses. LCT’s quarterly revenue grew 20.03% to RM2.7 billion from RM2.24 billion in 3QFY21, mainly due to higher sales volume in its olefins, derivative and polyolefin products.

Affin Bank Bhd is said to have clinched a cash deal to sell its asset management arm, Affin Hwang Asset Management Bhd (Affin Hwang AM), the banking group’s crown jewel. The price tag is believed to be in the range of RM2.3 billion to RM2.6 billion cash, according to sources. Private equity fund CVC Capital Partners is among interested parties wanting to take over Affin Hwang AM, whose asset under management has grown to RM81 billion as of end-2021.

AirAsia Group Bhd’s combined operations across Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines recorded the group’s highest quarterly load factor at 80% in the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2021 (4QFY21) since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020, as the budget airline’s number of passengers carried, which more than doubled from a year earlier, surpassed the quantum of the airline’s capacity growth. AirAsia Group undertakes its Malaysia, Indonesia and Philippines operations via the company’s respective Air Operating Certificates (AOCs) in these countries.

Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) has appointed former Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH) chief financial officer Datuk Merina Abu Tahir as the group’s independent and non-executive director, effective next Tuesday (Feb 1). It was reported in November last year that Merina stepped down as TH’s CFO, after holding the position for some 22 months.

AMMB Holdings Bhd (AmBank) said on Thursday (Jan 27) that Tan Sri Azman Hashim will retire as its non-independent non-executive chairman effective March 31, 2022, after the end of AmBank’s financial year. Azman will continue to hold the position of chairman in multiple entities including the Asian Institute of Chartered Bankers, Asian Banking School Sdn Bhd, Financial Industry Collective Outreach, Malaysia South-South Corp Bhd, Malaysia-Japan Economic Association, Perdana Leadership Foundation, Malaysia South-South Association, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia — Azman Hashim International Business School Advisory Council and Chairman Emeritus of Pacific Basin Economic Council.

Uzma Bhd has been awarded a RM30 million contract from EnQuest Petroleum Production Malaysia Ltd. Uzma said the contract to provide hydraulic workover unit (HWU) for EnQuest’s 2022 workover programme was awarded to its wholly-owned subsidiary, Uzma Engineering Sdn Bhd, from Dec 1, 2021. The announcement was only approved for publication on Thursday.

Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) has announced that Datuk Khairussaleh Ramli will be appointed as the banking group’s new president and chief executive officer (CEO), effective May 1. According to the statement, the appointment of Khairussaleh has been greenlit by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM). The largest bank in Malaysia said Khairussaleh will be taking over from Datuk Seri Abdul Farid Alias, who will be leaving on April 30, after him not having sought an extension of his contract which is due for expiry on Aug 1 this year.

Pavilion Real Estate Investment Trust (PavREIT) saw its net property income (NPI) for the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2021 (4QFY21) rise 20.78% to RM82.69 million from RM68.46 million a year ago, on lower operating expenses. In contrast, its quarterly revenue slipped 4.98% to RM124.28 million from RM130.79 million on a year-on-year (y-o-y) basis, mainly due to lower occupancy rates because of non-renewal of expired tenancies and some tenants deferring their rent commencement dates. The REIT also declared a final income distribution of 2.58 sen per unit for FY21, to be paid on Feb 28, 2022.

Axiata Group Bhd will be acquiring a 66.03% stake in Indonesia’s PT Link Net Tbk for a total cash consideration of 8.72 trillion rupiah (about RM2.55 billion).  The group said its indirect wholly-owned subsidiary Axiata Investments (Indonesia) Sdn Bhd (AII), and PT XL Axiata Tbk — an indirect 61.48% subsidiary of the group, have entered into a conditional share purchase agreement with Asia Link Dewa Pte Ltd (ALD) and PT First Media Tbk (FM) to acquire the 1.82 billion shares in Link Net. Upon completion of the acquisition, AII will be obligated to undertake a proposed mandatory tender offer (MTO) as per the regulations of the Indonesian Financial Services Authority.

Eita Resources Bhd has secured two contracts worth a total of RM58.35 million for substation extension and reinforcement of supply at Mambong and Entinggan substations in Sarawak. The projects, which will commence on Feb 7, were awarded by Sarawak Energy Bhd to Eita Resources’ 60%-owned unit TransSystem Continental Sdn Bhd (TSC) and Terapan Dinamik (M) Sdn Bhd.

LKL International Bhd said its wholly-owned unit LKL Advance Metaltech Sdn Bhd (LKLAM) is buying 60.2 million shares, representing a 13.78% stake, in travel management company Parlo Bhd at the price of 22 sen each, for a total cash consideration of RM13.24 million. LKLAM, which is principally involved in the business of providing medical and healthcare beds, as well as peripherals and accessories, entered into an agreement on Thursday (Jan 27) with Parlo's substantial shareholder Thirty Keystone Sdn Bhd.

Tasco Bhd saw its net profit for the third quarter ended Dec 31, 2021 (3QFY22) fall by 24% to RM8.81 million from RM11.6 million in the same period in the previous year, despite an 87% jump in quarterly revenue to RM455.09 million. Tasco attributed the earnings contraction to higher non-operating expenses.

China Automobile Parts Holdings Ltd (CAP) is terminating the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to buy Master Tec Wire & Cable Sdn Bhd with immediate effect. Last month, CAP signed the MoU with Master Tec’s shareholder and director Datuk Lau Kim San to acquire the entire equity interest of the target company, which is principally engaged in the manufacturing, trading and sale of wires and fibre optic cables.

https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/westport-pharmaniaga-lotte-chemical-affin-airasia-tnb-ambank-uzma-maybank-pavreit-axiata