Stocks To Watch MAS, KLK, TH Plant, LBS, Bumi Armada, Daya, Alam Maritim, AAX, Ho Hup


Business & Markets 2013
Written by Ho Wah Foon of theedgemalaysia.com   
Tuesday, 20 August 2013 19:36

KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 20): Based on news flow and corporate results filed today, the stocks that are likely to stir tomorrow include MAS, Batu Kawan, KLK, TH Plant, LBS, Bumi Armada, Daya, Alam Maritim, AAX and Ho Hup.

Malaysia Airlines System Bhd (MAS) said its net loss for the second quarter to end-June 2013 narrowed by about 50% to RM175.9 million, from a net loss of RM349.2 million in the second quarter of 2012.

But the national carrier said it posted an operating profit of RM8 million for the quarter, compared to an operating loss of RM102 million in the corresponding quarter one year ago. 

There was also improvement in revenue for the quarter, rising to RM3.8 billion from RM3.3 billion a year ago.

In a press statement, MAS said the improved results were attributed to the strong growth in revenue and the focus on productivity and cost control. 

Going forward, MAS sees a better second half of 2013. Traditionally the second half of the year is better compared to the first half.

BATU KAWAN BHD []'s net profit for the second quarter ended June 30 fell to RM110.5 million, a 7% dip from 3QFY12's profit of RM119.1 million. 

Batu Kawan said the lower profit was due to a lower profit contribution from its PLANTATION [] associate, Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad (KLK). 

Revenue was RM88.3 million, compared with RM82.5 million.

Looking forward, the company said its profit for the year is "expected to be lower than that of the previous financial year, due to the slow recovery of the global economy and prevailing weaker commodity prices affecting KLK's profit". 

KUALA LUMPUR KEPONG BHD [] (KLK) told Bursa Malaysia that its net profit for third financial quarter ended June 30 fell 18.8% year-on-year to RM189.2 million.

Revenue for the quarter also fell to RM2.2 billion from RM2.6 billion, KLK said in its filing.

Reviewing its third quarter results, KLK said plantations profit fell sharply by 47.9% to RM114.8 million, from 3QFY2012’s RM220.4 million.

Profit from manufacturing division also slipped 12.1% to RM69.1 million on the back of a 10.6% drop in revenue to RM1.17 billion.

Looking ahead, KLK said the group expects the plantations profit to be much lower than that of the last financial year.

TH PLANTATIONS BHD [] posted a net profit of RM7.1 million for the second quarter ended June 30, 2013, a plunge of 64% compared to the second quarter of 2012, due to lower palm oil prices.

In a press statement, TH Plant said the group’s revenue of RM95.8 million declined only by 4% year-on-year, on stronger production and better cost efficiencies.

LBS BINA GROUP BHD [] declared a tax-exempt special dividend of 8 sen per share after the recent completion in the disposal of two China firms.

The dividend is to be paid on Oct 18, 2013, said the company in a filing to Bursa Malaysia.

The company added there will be four more special dividend payments of 6 sen from 2004 to 2007, as more cash proceeds of the assets sale are received.

LBS Bina’s disposal of its China assets for HKD1.65 billion has resulted in the company receiving cash of HKD500 million, 225,563,909 shares of Hong Kong listed Zhuhai Holdings Investment Group Ltd and also the promissory note for the deferred cash payment of HKD850 million.

The property company also announced that with effect from financial year 2013, it will be adopting a policy to pay a minimum normal dividend based on 30% of the company’s profit after taxation for each financial year.

Bumi Armada Bhd posted a net profit of RM112 million for its second quarter ended June 30, a 22% increase from 2QFY12's net profit of RM92 million. 

Revenue was also higher at RM481.2 million, compared with RM384.6 million at the same time last year. 

This was attributed to an increase in activity for the group's floating production storage offloading (FPSO), offshore support vessels (OSV) and transport & installation (T&I) segments. 

Looking ahead, Bumi Armada said the long term outlook for the offshore oil and gas services sector remains positive. 

DAYA MATERIALS BHD [] saw an 18% rise in its net profit to RM6.7 million for its second quarter ended June 30, from RM5.7 million in the previous corresponding quarter. 

"The slight improvement in profits was mainly attributable to the sales from the oil and gas segment in current quarter which was mainly generated from subsea offshore business that carried lower profit margin than the traditional chemical sales, which tend to yield a higher profit margin," said the group.

Revenue for the quarter was RM131.1 million, compared with RM75.4 million in previous year similar quarter. 
Looking forward, the group said it is "cautiously optimistic" on its business outlook.

ALAM MARITIM RESOURCES BHD [] posted a net profit of RM29.4 million for the second quarter to June 2013, up 83% from RM16.1 million in similar quarter last year.

But revenue shrank to RM73.8 million from RM163.4 million.

The company said profit improved due to significant increase in operating margin derived from its own vessels and higher share of results of jointly controlled entities.

It looks forward to a year of growth.

AirAsia X Bhd (AAX) announced that it posted a smaller net loss of RM33.3 million for the second quarter to June 30, from RM77.6 million in similar quarter the previous year.

Revenue increased to RM491.1 million from RM405.2 million.

The company said it expects its prospects to remain positive.

Ho Hup CONSTRUCTION [] Company Bhd posted a net profit of RM6.4 million for the second quarter to end-June 2013, compared to a net loss of RM9.0 million in similar quarter in previous financial year.

The company attributed this mainly to an extraordinary gain in the construction sector under which it sold an associate company.

Revenue rose to RM16.6 million from RM5.8 million.