Mudajaya posts RM5.95m profit in 1Q, bullish on outlook

by **Cals** Sun 29 May 2016, 23:55

By Gho Chee Yuan / theedgemarkets.com | May 27, 2016 : 7:17 PM MYT

KUALA LUMPUR (May 27): Mudajaya Group Bhd posted a net profit of RM5.95 million or 1.1 sen per share for the first quarter ended March 31, 2016 (1QFY16), compared with a net loss of RM19.66 million or 3.65 sen loss per share a year earlier.

This is the group's third consecutive quarter of profits after being in the red.

Revenue rose 15.6% to RM177.45 million from RM153.46 million in 1QFY15, the group said in a filing to Bursa Malaysia today.

Mudajaya attributed its better financial performance to improved showing by its construction and property segments.

The group also benefitted from lower operating expenses, which fell 7.8% to RM153.35 million compared with RM166.36 million in 1QFY15

The group said the construction segment reported a pre-tax profit of RM5.2 million during the quarter against a pre-tax loss of RM21.8 million a year ago, due to contribution from the Pengerang projects, which commenced works in 3QFY15.

Its property development segment reported a higher pre-tax profit of RM2.8 million versus RM700,000 previously, due to sales of higher profit margin properties.

Mudajaya said the outlook for the construction sector in Malaysia remains strong in the coming years with an ongoing stream of mega infrastructure projects to be launched including the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Line 2 and the Light Rail Transit (LRT) Line 3, new power plants, highways and infrastructure projects.

"The group is confident that it will benefit from some of these proposed projects," it added.

In terms of strategy, Mudajaya said it will continue to pursue investments both locally and overseas to build up its assets with recurring income streams to cushion against the cyclical nature of the construction business.

It will also expand on its precast concrete manufacturing businesses to capitalise on the increasing demand from various mega-infrastructure projects, the group said.

Mudajaya's share price fell two sen or 1.67% to RM1.18 today, for a market value of RM635.31 million.