KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 1): Here is a brief recap of some corporate announcements that made the news on Thursday (Nov 30) involving Capital A Bhd, Maxim Global Bhd, Serba Dinamik Holdings Bhd, CIMB Group Holdings Bhd, IHH Healthcare Bhd, Hong Leong Bank Bhd, Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd, IJM Corp Bhd, Alliance Bank Malaysia Bhd, IJM Corp Bhd, Datasonic Group Bhd and Senheng New Retail Bhd.

Capital A Bhd said it is in the "last stretch" of finalising its Practice Note 17 regularisation plan and aims to make a full submission to Bursa Malaysia in "the near future". The group said that the careful planning is to ensure that the group’s restructuring reviews and discussions are thorough, and reflect its dedication to long-term stability and strategic adaptability. Looking ahead to 2024, Capital A chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes said the group is projecting a significant upswing. Capital A, which experienced three consecutive profitable quarters, slid back into the red in its third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023), with a net loss of RM178.82 million, largely because the immediate preceding quarter had recorded a gain from the consolidation of Asia Aviation Public Company Ltd Group of RM1.37 billion. But year-on-year, the group narrowed its net loss from the RM901.31 million it incurred in 3QFY2022 on continued improvement in its aviation business, as revenue more than doubled to RM4.23 billion from RM1.96 billion. The 3QFY2023 revenue is also a continued improvement from the RM3.15 billion topline it recorded for 2QFY2023 when it made a net profit of RM1.12 billion.

Maxim Global Bhd was queried by Bursa Malaysia on the scant details regarding its “privatisation agreement” to decommission and upgrade several sewerage treatment plants in Cheras. One of Bursa's six queries revolved around the value of the land that would be transferred to the developer upon completion of the decommissioning and upgrading works, including provision of amenities and utilities done by Maxim's subsidiary. However, Maxim said in its reply to Bursa that details of the land swap and capital for the project are confidential under the privatisation agreement, pending government approval.

Serba Dinamik Holdings Bhd said it was unable to release its financial report for its first quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (1QFY2024) by Nov 30 as required under listing requirements. The troubled oil and gas company did not clarify why it was unable to meet the deadline, but said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia on Thursday that it expects to submit the quarterly report by Dec 7. This is the fourth consecutive quarter that Serba Dinamik has delayed issuing its financial report within the prescribed time. The company has been in the red for the last eight quarters. The group also failed to issue its annual report for FY2023 by the Oct 31 deadline, and has yet to issue the annual report to date. Its request to extend the deadline for this till Jan 15, 2024 was rejected by Bursa Malaysia.

CIMB Group Holdings Bhd’s net profit rose 31.3% to RM1.85 billion for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023) from RM1.41 billion a year earlier. The growth was attributed to strong non-interest income improvement, partially offset by weaker net interest income due to net interest margin compression from higher cost of deposits. Quarterly revenue rose marginally by 6.2% to RM5.31 billion from RM4.99 billion last year.

IHH Healthcare Bhd saw its net profit in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023) more than double to RM532.07 million from RM251.76 million in the same period last year, boosted by growth from higher patient volumes and revenue from higher acuity treatment. The healthcare’s quarterly revenue rose by 26.74% to RM5.83 billion compared with RM4.6 billion, underpinned by higher revenue contribution from its hospital and healthcare segment.

Hong Leong Bank Bhd’s (HLB) net profit rose 4.93% to RM1.03 billion for the first quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (1QFY2024) against RM981.41 million a year ago, on higher contributions from the bank’s associates and reversal of impairment losses. Quarterly revenue, meanwhile, slipped 7.05% to RM1.39 billion from RM1.5 billion. HLB recorded a net written back of allowance for impairment losses on loans, advances and financing of RM88.7 million, and a higher share of profit from the associated company of RM89.5 million during the quarter. However, this was mitigated by lower net income of RM105.8 million, higher operating expenses of RM15.7 million, and allowance for impairment losses on financial investments and other assets of RM700,000.

Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd recorded a net profit of RM741.64 million for the first quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (1QFY2024), up 10.78% from RM669.47 million in the same period a year ago, as it saw an improvement across all operating companies and reversal of impairment losses. Revenue for the quarter slipped 2.38% to RM1.56 billion from RM1.6 billion in the prior year.

Alliance Bank Malaysia Bhd saw its net profit rise 16.98% to RM185.33 million for the second quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (2QFY2024), from RM158.42 million a year before, due to higher revenue and lower expected credit losses. Quarterly revenue was up 9.89% to RM528.1 million, from RM480.57 million a year before. The bank declared a first interim single-tier dividend of 10.85 sen per share, representing a total dividend payout ratio of 50%, payable on Dec 28.

IJM Corp Bhd’s net profit for the second quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (2QFY2024) surged over threefold to RM93.69 million from RM27.03 million a year earlier, carried by strong showings from its property development and infrastructure segments. Touching on the group’s topline, quarterly revenue jumped 36.05% to RM1.46 billion versus RM1.07 billion previously on the back of improvements across all its segments — comprising construction, property development, manufacturing and quarrying, infrastructure, as well as investment and others.

Datasonic Group Bhd recorded a net profit of RM18.15 million for its second quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (2QFY2024), down 27.13% from the RM24.91 million it made in the corresponding quarter last year — when earnings leaped over 20 times amid a surge in applications for passports and MyKad, including first-time applications and renewals following the reopening of international borders on April 1, 2022. The security-based ICT solutions provider declared a second interim dividend of 0.6 sen per share for FY2024 payable on Dec 29, bringing total dividends declared year to date to 1.2 sen, compared with 0.75 sen in the corresponding period in FY2023.

Senheng New Retail Bhd’s net profit tumbled 64.56% to RM5.16 million in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023) from RM14.55 million in the corresponding quarter a year ago, as revenue dropped while it recorded higher operating and administrative expenses amid its expansion plan. This is the group’s lowest quarterly profit since its listing in January 2022.The consumer electrical and electronics retailer said revenue for the quarter fell 11.65% to RM312.83 million from RM354.1 million in 3QFY2022 due to lower sales on weaker consumer sentiment.