Mar24-Companies in the news Glomac, CIMB, CAB Cakaran, Carlsberg, Poh Kong, Tenaga, IOI Corp, KNM, Ho Hup, Wah Seong and Malaysia Smelting

by **Cals** Thu 24 Mar 2016, 06:28

Companies in the news

[size=28]Glomac, CIMB, CAB Cakaran, Carlsberg, Poh Kong, Tenaga, IOI Corp, KNM, Ho Hup, Wah Seong and Malaysia Smelting

By Ahmad Naqib Idris / theedgemarkets.com | March 23, 2016 : 9:32 PM MYT

KUALA LUMPUR (March 23): Based on corporate announcements and news flow today, companies that may be in focus tomorrow (Thursday, March 24) could include the following: Glomac, CIMB, CAB Cakaran, Carlsberg, Poh Kong, Tenaga, IOI Corp, KNM, Ho Hup, Wah Seong and Malaysia Smelting.

Property developer Glomac Bhd said it plans to roll out RM627 million new launches in the second half of its financial year ending April 30, 2016 (2HFY16), where four out of the five planned projects are in the affordable landed residential segment.

Glomac said its near-term financial performance will be sustained by its unbilled sales of RM593 million as at Jan 31, 2016.

Meanwhile, Glomac saw its net profit fall 15.9% to RM19.68 million or 2.74 sen per share in its third financial quarter ended Jan 31, 2016 (3QFY16), from RM23.4 million or 3.23 sen a share a year ago.

Revenue, however, rose 42.5% to RM158.13 million in 3QFY16, from RM110.96 million in 3QFY15. It also declared an interim dividend of 2 sen per share for FY16.

The entitlement date and payment date will be determined later.

For the nine-month period (9MFY16), its net profit grew a marginal 1.5% to RM58.28 million or 8.13 sen per share, compared to RM57.41 million a year ago; while revenue climbed 40.6% to RM427.18 million, from RM303.79 million.

CIMB Group Holdings Bhd, the country's second largest bank by assets, is divesting its 51% stake in Indonesian life insurer PT CIMB Sun Life for IDR550 billion (RM169 million) cash.

In a statement today, CIMB said it has entered into a conditional sale and purchase agreement to divest the stake in CIMB Sun Life.

The divestment will take the form of a sale of shares held by CIMB, which will be acquired directly and indirectly by Sun Life Assurance Co of Canada. CIMB's 51% equity interest in CIMB Sun Life is currently held via CIG Bhd (47.24%) and PT Bank CIMB Niaga Tbk (3.76%).

"This divestment is another step towards business consolidation and resource optimisation in line with our recalibration strategies to achieve our T182 aspirations," said CIMB group chief executive Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Aziz.

CAB Cakaran Corp Bhd has obtained the approval from its shareholders in an extraordinary general meeting today for its proposed private placement to Plant Wealth Holdings Ltd.

The private placement, which is expected to raise total proceeds of RM31.18 million, involves the issuance of some 15.06 million new shares, at an issue price of RM2.07 per share.

The group said RM10 million from its total proceeds will be used for the repayment of bank borrowings, which will reduce its gearing level to 0.74 times from 1.05 times.

Meanwhile, RM20.78 million of the proceeds will be used for working capital purposes, while the balance will be used to cover expenses arising from the placement exercise.

Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia Bhd has appointed Lars Lehmann, the current regional chief executive officer, Western Europe Challenger Markets of Carlsberg A/S, as its managing director effective July 1, 2016.

Lehmann will be replacing current managing director Henrik Juel Andersen, who has been appointed to a senior position in Carslberg A/S as managing director of Lao Brewery Company Ltd.

Poh Kong Holdings Bhd saw its net profit plunge 77% to RM1.77 million or 0.43 sen per share for the second quarter ended Jan 31, 2016, from RM7.71 million or 1.88 sen per share in the previous year's corresponding quarter, amid weaker demand for gold jewellery during the quarter.

Revenue for the quarter was down 6% at RM203.37 million, from RM216.45 million a year earlier.

In a filing with the exchange, Poh Kong said the sharp decline in its profit for the quarter was due to a decline in sales volume during the quarter, as demand for gold jewellery products fell amid the weaker market sentiment.

For the six months to Jan 31, net profit dropped 80% to RM2.11 million, from RM10.79 million in the preceding year, while revenue declined 8% to RM375.67 million from RM410.41 million.

Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) said it will be paying US$12 million or 5% more to acquire a 30% stake in Turkish power company GAMA Enerji AS.

The initial purchase price was US$243 million for the stake, but this has been revised to US$255 million, due to TNB's and the vendors' agreement to retain additional assets as a project of GAMA Enerji, it added.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia today, the national utility company said it has entered into an amendment agreement to the share sale agreement signed with GAMA Holding AS, International France Corp (IFC) and IFC Global Infrastructure Fund Holding I Cooperatief UA in December last year.

"The proposed acquisition is expected to be completed by April this year," it added.

IOI Corp Bhd has clarified that the sales of its crude palm oil (CPO) will not be affected even in the event of a suspension of the company's Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) membership, as CPO is a globally traded commodity.

IOI said the only effect that a RSPO membership suspension would have is to deny the company Certified Sustainable Palm Oil (CSPO) premium earnings on its oil, which represents less than 0.5% of its total revenue.

"RSPO has confirmed that even in the event of a suspension, IOI's existing inventory of CSPO remains unaffected and can continue to be sold as CSPO," it said in a statement today.

KHH Infrastructures Sdn Bhd has bagged a civil and underground piping subcontract worth RM57.8 million at the Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development (RAPID) project in Johor.

KNM Group Bhd and Ho Hup Construction Company Bhd said in separate filings to Bursa Malaysia today that KHH, which is a 50:50 joint venture between KNM's wholly-owned subsidiary KNM Process Systems Sdn Bhd and Ho Hup, was awarded the job by Sinopec Engineering Group Malaysia Sdn Bhd.

The scope of supply and work of KHH will include general building works for electrical substation and field auxiliary room, foundations, superstructures, internal roads, paving, underground piping, trenches, manholes, pits, basins and related civil work.

Wah Seong Corporation Bhd said its pipe coating joint venture (JV) unit has been awarded a US$74 million (RM296 million) subcontract to provide insulation coating protection for an offshore project in the Gulf of Mexico.

The JV, Bayou Wasco Insulation LLC, is 49%-owned by Wasco Coatings UK Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Wah Seong, and 51%-owned by American multinational Aegion Corporation.

Wah Seong told Bursa Malaysia today that the subcontract work involves the provision of insulation coating protection for the deep water portion of an undersea pipeline, which is the core business of Wah Seong.

"The subcontract work is expected to contribute positively to the group earnings.

"The subcontract work is project specific and is not renewable," it said.

Datuk Ng Jui Sia has been appointed as the independent and non-executive chairman of Malaysia Smelting Corp Bhd(MSC).

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia today, MSC said that Ng, 64, who was Fraser & Neave Holdings Bhd (F&N)'s chief executive officer (CEO) from October 2010 to October 2013, and group CEO of F&N Ltd's Food & Beverage (Non Alcoholic) from July 2013 until May 2015, will be taking the chairman's seat.

Ng, a Singaporean, currently holds the position of strategic adviser at F&N Ltd, and is also a board member of Vietnam Dairy Products Joint Stock Company. He was also a director of Cocoaland Holdings Bhd.
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