KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 23): Here is a brief recap of some corporate announcements that made news on Thursday: Genting Bhd, Genting Malaysia Bhd (GenM), Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Keluarga Bhd (Takaful Malaysia), Jentayu Sustainables Bhd, Thong Guan Industries Bhd, Kanger International Bhd, S P Setia Bhd, AME Elite Consortium Bhd, Allianz Malaysia Bhd, DRB-Hicom Bhd, Petronas Dagangan Bhd (PetDag), Dayang Enterprise Holdings Bhd, YTL Corp Bhd, Kelington Group Bhd, TSH Resources Bhd, Telekom Malaysia Bhd, Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd, Kerjaya Prospek Property Bhd, Fiamma Holdings Bhd, MSM Malaysia Holdings Bhd and Daythree Digital Bhd.

Genting Bhd saw its net profit jump by over four-fold to RM520.52 million for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023) from RM128.02 million a year ago, as the recovery at its leisure and hospitality businesses gained further momentum. The higher quarterly earnings were also driven by lower impairment losses, lower net finance cost, higher share of profit in joint ventures and associates. For the cumulative nine-month period, Genting recorded a net profit of RM779.1 million versus a net loss of RM131.19 million in the previous corresponding period, as revenue grew 24% to RM19.85 billion from RM16.02 billion.

Meanwhile, Genting Malaysia Bhd (GenM) recorded a net profit of RM177.41 million or 3.13 sen per share for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023), the group’s highest quarterly profit since the Covid-19 outbreak in 1QFY2020, thanks to continued recovery in its leisure and hospitality businesses. The group’s impairment losses of RM12.8 million on certain casino licences in 3QFY2023 was also significantly lower than the RM47.6 million write-off incurred in 3QFY2022, which were related to receivables in the US and certain vacant leased properties in the UK. Net profit for 3QFY2023 shot up by over 15 times from a meagre RM11.38 million or 0.2 sen per share a year ago. Revenue grew 19% to RM2.71 billion in 3QFY2023 from RM2.27 billion in 3QFY2022 as business volume was higher in Malaysia, UK and Egypt, while the group’s US and Bahamas operations enjoyed higher contributions from Resorts World New York City.

Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Keluarga Bhd (Takaful Malaysia) posted a 24.9% increase in net profit for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023) to RM91.1 million or 10.88 sen per share from RM72.95 million or 8.72 sen per share a year ago. This was mainly driven by a RM140.6 million increase in investment income that is mostly attributable to higher profit from fixed income investment assets and lower fair value losses. Quarterly revenue expanded by 25.2% to RM767.65 million in 3QFY2023 from RM613.28 million in the previous year corresponding quarter.

Jentayu Sustainables Bhd, which engages in renewable energy, healthcare and trading of building materials, is disposing of a 12,884 sq ft piece of residential land in Jalan Mayang here to Armani Development Sdn Bhd for RM25 million, which will be satisfied via a combination of RM19 million cash and the remaining RM6 million in contra of units. The original cost of investment by Jentayu Sustainables was RM15.5 million on Sept 30, 2010, while the audited net book value of the property amounted to RM25 million as at June 30, 2023. As such, Jentayu Sustainables said the proposed disposal is expected to result in a pro forma loss of RM1.35 million to the group after taking into account the estimated expenses for the transaction.

Plastic packaging manufacturer Thong Guan Industries Bhd saw its net profit for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023) drop 19.3% to RM21.9 million from RM27.12 million a year earlier, on lower revenue. Quarterly revenue fell 11% to RM317.38 million in 3QFY2023 from RM356.5 million in 3QFY2022, due to lower sales volume of its garbage bag, and food wrap and courier bags divisions, coupled with lower average selling price (ASP) for the current quarter. Interest expenses and selling and distribution expenses also increased. Lower ASP is in line with the drop of raw material price, said Thong Guan.

Bamboo products manufacturer Kanger International Bhd said it is acquiring the remaining 49% stake in building materials supplier Sung Master Holdings Sdn Bhd for RM72 million cash. Sung Master is primarily involved in the sales and trading of building materials, including timber flooring, tiles, bulk cement, concrete, locksets and sanitary ware. Its clients consist of property and construction players as well as engineering consultants who are either a main contractor or sub-contractor of a development project. According to Kanger, which expanded into the construction business in 2021, Sung Master has contributed to the group's revenue for the financial year ended March 31, 2022 (FY2022).

S P Setia Bhd has reported that its net profit for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 fell to RM51.8 million from RM70.19 million in the same quarter of 2022. Revenue was, however, higher at RM1.08 billion versus RM861 million a year ago. The company in a statement accompanying the release of its results said for the first nine months of this year sales hit RM3.89 billion — surpassing the RM2.7 billion it achieved in the same period last year, thanks to land sales and stronger demand for its property offerings.

AME Elite Consortium Bhd posted a 52.34% drop in its second quarter net profit ended Sept 30, 2023 (2QFY2024) to RM21.83 million or 3.42 sen per share due to the absence of fair value gain on investment properties. Meanwhile, revenue climbed 58.23% to RM233.34 million from RM147.47 million a year earlier, boosted by property development, engineering services rental, surface and income as well as sale of goods. It declared a two sen dividend for the quarter, payable on Jan 5, 2024. In addition, AME Elite generated a share of profit of RM158,000 for the quarter compared to a share of loss of RM30,000 from the equity accounted joint ventures in the previous year due to the revision of costs for the completed projects.

Allianz Malaysia Bhd's net profit grew 42% year-on-year for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023) as revenue from both general and life insurance improved, coupled with lower expenses. Net profit rose to RM197.86 million or RM1.11 per share from RM139.59 million or 78.47 sen per share in 3QFY2022. Revenue grew 17% to RM1.31 billion from RM1.12 billion previously, thanks to increased gross earned premiums from the motor business while the life insurance segment saw higher revenue from investment-linked protection business.

DRB-Hicom Bhd registered a 50.8% drop in net profit to RM70.8 million in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023), compared with RM143.95 million a year ago, as revenue and share of profit from associate companies declined. Quarterly revenue declined by 12% to RM4 billion from RM4.54 billion a year prior, mainly due to decreased contribution from its automotive, aerospace and defence, and postal business sectors. In respect of the nine-month period ended Sept 30, 2023 (9MFY2023), the group’s revenue increased by 8.2% to RM12.08 billion compared with RM11.16 billion in the corresponding period last year.

Petronas Dagangan Bhd (PetDag) said its net profit for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023) declined 33.06% to RM184.72 million from RM275.97 million in the same period last year amid an increase in operating expenditure. Revenue slipped 2.12% to RM9.92 billion from RM10.13 billion in 3QFY2022 on the back of higher sales volume offset by a decline in average selling prices. The group declared an interim dividend of 20 sen per share to be paid on Dec 22.

Dayang Enterprise Holdings Bhd posted its best quarterly net profit in about three years after the integrated oil and gas service provider logged a net profit of RM76.38 million for its third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023), compared with RM52.9 million in the same quarter last year. Quarterly revenue rose 1.6% to RM343.76 million against RM338.34 million, underpinned by improved daily charter rates of vessels and more work order or contracts being awarded by oil majors received under topside maintenance contracts. The improved financial performance was achieved on the back of better margins from vessel chartering and much lower other expenses attributed by net realised/unrealised foreign exchange loss exposure.

YTL Corp Bhd posted its best quarterly net profit since 2006 at RM521.7 million in the quarter ended Sept 30 (1QFY2024) as all business segments' contributions grew save for construction. Revenue in the quarter rose 15.91% to RM7.52 billion from RM6.49 billion. YTL Corp’s best quarterly profit attributable to owners of the company was RM858.81 million recorded in 2QFY2006 against revenue of RM1.29 billion.

Kelington Group Bhd’s third quarter net profit jumped 101.63% to RM31.67 million from RM15.71 million a year earlier, driven by the  industrial gases division which received high demand for liquid carbon dioxide from both the domestic and export markets. Revenue increased 10% to RM401.825 million from RM366.39 million in 3QFY2022. For the first nine months of FY2023, the group recorded a net profit of RM66.92 million, up 78% from RM37.57 million in the previous year, attributed to the ultra high purity (UHP) and process engineering division supported by the increase in the demand for the industrial gases division. Earnings per share increased to 10.39 sen from 5.84 sen.

Palm oil player TSH Resources Bhd has recorded a core profit before tax of RM60.1 million in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023) up 76.7% from RM34 million in the corresponding quarter last year on the back of higher revenue. Quarterly revenue rose 13.7% to RM298.72 million from RM262.65 million in 3QFY2022 underpinned by higher average crude palm oil price of RM3,371 per tonne compared with RM3,234 per tonne a year ago.

Telekom Malaysia Bhd’s (TM) net profit more than doubled to RM538.19 million for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023) from RM265.2 million recorded in the previous year’s corresponding quarter, due to lower tax and net finance costs. Quarterly revenue slipped to RM3.08 billion from RM3.16 billion previously amid a decrease in voice, data and other telecommunications related services. This, however, was offset by higher revenue from internet and multimedia services, reflecting the steady growth in cumulative fixed broadband subscribers. No dividend was declared for 3QFY2023.

Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd’s net profit surged 155.17% to RM81.9 million in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023) from RM32.1 million a year earlier, on the back of higher sales volume and improvement in refining margins. Quarterly revenue rose 3.56% to RM4.85 billion from RM4.68 billion mainly due to an increase in production at its Port Dickson refinery, which offset the lower prices of dated Brent of US$87 (RM406.50) against US$101 per barrel in 3QFY2022.

Kerjaya Prospek Property Bhd (KPProp), which reported a net profit of RM22.8 million for its second quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (2QFY2024) — little changed from a year ago — is looking for new strategic plots to increase its land bank, especially in the Klang Valley, to ensure a steady pipeline of future development projects, according to executive chairman Datin Toh Siew Chuon. KPProp posted a net profit of RM22.8 million for 2QFY2024, up marginally against RM22.52 million in the previous year’s corresponding quarter while revenue rose 5.63% to RM92.41 million from RM87.49 million on higher contribution from its property and hospitality segments.

Fiamma Holdings Bhd's net profit in the three months ended Sept 30, 2023 climbed by 35.55% to RM10.48 million from RM7.73 million, thanks to a RM9.16 million gain on sale of other investments which offset a negative change of fair value in other investments of RM5.3 million and higher operating expenses and finance costs. Revenue for the three-month period rose by 13.91% to RM102.27 million compared with RM89.79 million in the corresponding period a year ago.

Sugar refiner MSM Malaysia Holdings Bhd’s net loss narrowed to RM36.06 million or 5.13 sen per share for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023), thanks to improved margin from higher average selling price, lower freight cost and better capacity utilisation. This was 50% lower than the net loss of RM72.8 million or 10.36 sen per share recorded by MSM, which is 51%-owned by FGV Holdings Bhd. MSM’s 3QFY2023 revenue grew 21% to RM806.72 million from RM668.13 million a year ago.

Daythree Digital Bhd booked a net profit of RM959,000 in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023), down quarter-on-quarter from RM2.62 million due to listing expenses and higher headcount for new lines of business. It recorded non-recurring listing expenses of RM1.15 million in the quarter. The higher headcount is required for “initial set-up to manage two lines of business” for an existing client for the energy and utilities segment, it said.