Sime Darby, BIMB, HLFG, HLCAP, HLBANK, PBBANK, Crest Builder, IJM, MBSB, MYEG, Velesto, UMW, IHH Healthcare, QL Resources, Mulpha, Ann Joo, MAHB, Tiong Nam, KPower, Glomac and ATA IMS

Sime Darby, BIMB, HLFG, HLCAP, HLBANK, PBBANK, Crest Builder, IJM, MBSB, MYEG, Velesto, UMW, IHH Healthcare, QL Resources, Mulpha, Ann Joo, MAHB, Tiong Nam, KPower, Glomac and ATA IMS

KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 29): Based on corporate announcements and news flow on Monday, companies in focus on Tuesday (Nov 30) may include: Sime Darby Bhd, Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd (BIMB), Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd (HLFG), Hong Leong Capital Bhd (HLCAP), Hong Leong Bank Bhd (HLBANK), Public Bank Bhd (PBBANK), Crest Builder Holdings Bhd, IJM Corp Bhd, Malaysia Building Society Bhd (MBSB), MY EG Services Bhd (MYEG), Velesto Energy Bhd, UMW Holdings Bhd, IHH Healthcare Bhd, QL Resources Bhd, Mulpha International Bhd, Ann Joo Resources Bhd, Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB), Tiong Nam Logistics Holdings Bhd, KPower Bhd, Glomac Bhd and ATA IMS Bhd.

Sime Darby Bhd's first quarter net profit fell 16.01% to RM236 million from RM281 million a year earlier mainly due to lower profit from the diversified group's heavy equipment distribution business and after it registered a year earlier foreign exchange gain in an operating environment marred by Covid-19 pandemic-driven movement restrictions. Quarterly revenue slipped to RM10.67 billion in the first quarter ended Sept 30, 2021 from RM10.88 billion a year ago. Sime Darby did not declare any dividend for the quarter.

Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd’s net profit for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021 fell 0.6% to RM101.63 million from RM102.25 million a year ago on lower revenue. Quarterly revenue slipped 14.82% to RM746.22 million from RM876.09 million a year ago. An interim single-tier dividend of 10.93 sen for the financial year ending Dec 31, 2021 was declared, bringing total dividends declared to date for FY21 to the same amount of 10.93 sen against 5.55 sen last year.

Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd posted a net profit of RM640.56 million in the first quarter ended Sept 30, 2021, a 9.12% increase from RM587.03 million in the previous year's corresponding period due to positive contributions from its operating businesses — commercial banking division Hong Leong Bank Bhd and insurance division HLA Holdings Sdn Bhd. Earnings per share rose to 56.5 sen from 51.8 sen previously, while quarterly revenue was up by 4.04% to RM1.56 billion from RM1.5 billion in the same quarter last year.

Hong Leong Capital Bhd saw its net profit for 1QFY22 drop 36.71% y-o-y to RM28.84 million or 12.23 sen per share from RM45.56 million or 18.88 sen per share a year earlier due to lower profit contributions from its key operating subsidiary Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd. Quarterly revenue fell 19.1% to RM89.81 million against RM111.02 million. Book value per share decreased from RM4.06 as at June 30, 2021 to RM3.89 as at Sept 30, 2021 after the declaration of a final single-tier dividend of 26 sen for the financial year ended June 30, 2021.

Hong Leong Bank Bhd’s net profit for the first quarter ended Sept 30, 2021 jumped 17.7% to RM858.25 million from RM728.9 million a year ago, mainly due to higher net income and lower operating expenses as well as allowances for impairment losses on loans. Earnings per share were at 41.91 sen compared with 35.6 sen previously, while quarterly revenue was up 2.3% to RM1.38 billion from RM1.35 billion. The bank said the rise in profit was mainly due to higher net income of RM31.1 million, lower operating expenses of RM13.8 million as well as lower allowances for impairment losses on loans, advances and financing of RM55.6 million.

Public Bank Bhd's net profit for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021 dipped to RM1.36 billion from RM1.39 billion a year earlier on the back of lower revenue. Revenue for the quarter dropped to RM4.81 billion from RM5.13 billion. Earnings per share slipped to 7.01 sen from 7.18 sen. The bank did not declare any dividend for the quarter.

Crest Builder Holdings Bhd said on Monday that it has bagged a construction contract for a service apartment with car park worth RM107.5 million from Sime Darby Property (Ara Damansara) Sdn Bhd via its wholly-owned subsidiary Crest Builder Sdn Bhd. The contract was awarded for the construction of one block service apartment with car park podium at Ara Damansara and will be in effect for a period of 33 months from Oct 22, 2021 to July 21, 2024.

IJM Corp Bhd’s net profit surged 533% to RM629.3 million for the second quarter ended Sept 30, 2021, from RM99.36 million in the previous year’s corresponding quarter, helped by gains arising from the disposal of subsidiaries. Quarterly revenue fell 28% to RM874.25 million from RM1.22 billion a year earlier. However, it recorded gains of RM639.4 million arising from the disposal of subsidiaries. The group declared an interim dividend of two sen per share, as well as a special dividend of 15 sen per share for the quarter, which will be payable on Dec 30.

Malaysia Building Society Bhd posted a net loss of RM104.6 million for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021, (3QFY21), compared to a net profit of RM258.24 million a year earlier, due to a modification loss of RM146.97 million, compared with modification gain of RM7.5 million in 3QFY20 and up from RM13.2 million in 2QFY21 and higher impairment allowance of RM249 million from RM52.07 million in 3QFY20. Its quarterly revenue fell 11.04% to RM681.05 million from RM765.57 million a year ago.

MY EG Services Bhd recorded a net profit of RM78.46 million for its third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021, a growth of 10.91% year-on-year from RM70.74 million, thanks to its new concession services, new commercial services and an overall increase in transaction volumes for its existing services. Earnings per share rose to 1.1 sen from 1 sen while quarterly revenue stood at RM156.8 million up 15.2% from RM136.1 million a year prior.

Velesto Energy Bhd returned to the red in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021 with a net loss of RM52.04 million on low rig utilisation rates and reactivation costs for its oilfield services. Quarterly revenue fell 29.94% to RM91.54 million from RM130.66 million. The group, which operates six jack-up rigs, saw utilisation of 51% compared with 60% in 3QFY20, when the group made a net profit of RM479,000. Velesto was back in the black with a net profit of RM16.3 million in 2QFY21 — but that was only after including insurance claims of over RM550 million for the total loss of its Naga 7 rig.

UMW Holdings Bhd said the implementation of the Full Movement Control Order (FMCO) had significantly impacted its financial performance for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021, as it  reported a net loss of RM47.9 million, compared to a net profit of RM83.87 million a year ago. Quarterly revenue fell 24.29% to RM2.02 billion from RM2.66 billion amid lower sales in the automotive and manufacturing & engineering segments, where only certain operations of the group were allowed to operate with limited capacity. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, UMW’s net loss swelled from RM21.1 million registered in the immediate preceding quarter while revenue declined from RM2.45 billion, mainly due to a decrease in revenue in the two business segments, following a shorter operation period during the latest quarter.

IHH Healthcare Bhd said it had registered a net profit of RM550 million for its third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021, a 77% increase from last year’s RM309.95 million, on the back of a rebound in performance driven by factors that include patients returning to its hospital services network and contributions from Covid-19 services rendered, as well as maintaining cost discipline. Earnings per share for the healthcare group rose to 6.01 sen compared with 3.28 sen, while its revenues expanded by 26% to RM4.44 billion from RM3.52 billion a year prior.

QL Resources Bhd’s net profit for the second quarter ended Sept 30, 2021 fell 34.49% to RM45.94 million from RM70.13 million a year ago, amid higher depreciation and amortisation, and lower share of profit from associates. The group registered a 16% rise in depreciation and amortisation to RM57.72 million from RM49.77 million, while its share of profit from associates dropped 95% to RM180,000 from RM3.48 million, its bourse filing on Monday showed. The group reported a lower net earnings per share of 1.89 sen versus 2.88 sen previously. No dividend was declared.

Mulpha International Bhd’s net profit for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021 (3QFY21) jumped more than 13-fold quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q) to RM419.38 million from RM30.9 million previously, mainly attributed to a one-off gain on disposal of the group’s associate in New Zealand which is involved in online education sector amounting to RM420.9 million. Its earnings per share grew to 132.09 sen from 9.72 sen in the immediate preceding quarter. Despite reporting higher net profit, Mulpha’s quarterly revenue in 3QFY21 dropped 46.05% to RM141.19 million against RM261.69 million in 2QFY21, mainly due to the hospitality and property divisions.

Ann Joo Resources Bhd's net profit for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021 fell 17.46% quarter-on-quarter to RM69.08 million from RM83.7 million in the immediate preceding quarter as revenue declined, mainly on lower export sales tonnage amid price volatility in the international market. Quarterly revenue dropped 39.81% to RM405.69 million from RM674.07 million previously, while earnings per share fell to 12.74 sen from 15.48 sen. Nevertheless, Ann Joo has returned to the black compared with a year ago when it reported a net loss of RM18.92 million, primarily due to improved profit margins resulting from higher selling price which were driven by a robust recovery in China demand. This is despite revenue declining 27.58% year-on-year from RM560.21 million on lower export sales.

Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd saw its net loss narrow 43% year-on-year to RM182.32 million in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021 from a net loss of RM319.72 million, on the back of higher revenue posted coupled with lower operational expenses in the current quarter. Quarterly revenue, however, jumped by 16.3% to RM461.33 million from RM396.69 million a year ago, driven by higher passenger volumes for Turkey operations due to the relaxation of border and inter-city travel in Turkey.

Tiong Nam Logistics Holdings Bhd’s net profit for the second quarter ended Sept 30, 2021 plunged 93.12% to RM254,000 from RM3.69 million in the same period a year ago, mainly due to higher depreciation from increased capital expenditure, as well as higher staff costs in line with business expansions. It registered a loss per share of 0.05 sen compared to earnings per share of 0.83 sen while quarterly revenue increased 10.9% to RM165.37 million from RM149.05 million last year, of which 98.6% came from the logistics and warehousing services segment as the group continued its investments into new warehousing facilities and capacity for growth.

KPower Bhd (formerly known as Kumpulan Powernet Bhd) said its net profit for the first quarter ended September 30, 2021 fell by 61.35% to RM3.15 million from RM8.15 million, citing pandemic movement restrictions which had disrupted the progress of the group’s projects in Malaysia and Indonesia, according to its bourse filing on Monday. Earnings per share fell by 61.11% to 0.7 sen from 1.8 sen last year while quarterly revenue was also affected as it declined by 23% to RM43.78 million from RM57.06 million. The group said all of its segments — construction, property development and investment, and logistics — except its healthcare segment were mostly affected due to the MCO and workforce restrictions enforced by the Malaysian and Indonesian governments.

Glomac Bhd reported a net profit of RM11.52 million for its second quarter ended Oct 31, 2021, a 37.14% increase year-on-year from RM8.4 million in the same quarter last year, despite its operations being forced to stop due to the various phases of MCO instituted during the the last quarter. Earnings per share grew to 1.5 sen from 1.09 sen while quarterly revenue declined by 27.93% to RM75.39 million from RM104.61 million. The group said that it plans to launch new projects with a gross development value of RM216 million comprising additional phases of landed residential units in its existing townships for FY22.

ATA IMS Bhd is expecting another 40% drop in turnover for the financial year ending March 31, 2023 (FY23) following the termination of its contracts with Dyson, its largest customer, which contributes to about 80% of its revenue. Cost-cutting measures will be undertaken in response to the termination of contracts and that the company is working towards maintaining profitability by lowering costs to ensure sustainability. The termination of the contracts does not affect its operations, it said, except for the termination of tenancy and organisation-wide cost-cutting measures, and restructuring of bank borrowings for excess facilities, as the company is not required to hold as high levels of stock as before. For FY22, it is expecting revenue to reduce by 30% due to the impact of the MCO and the shortage of workers.

https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/sime-darby-bimb-hlfg-hlcap-hlbank-pbbank-crest-builder-ijm-mbsb-myeg-velesto-umw-ihh