KUALA LUMPUR (May 24): Amway (Malaysia) Holdings Bhd posted a net profit of RM19.57 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2023 (1QFY2023), down 3% from RM20.17 million a year earlier, on the back of lower sales.

Earnings per share fell to 11.9 sen from 12.27 sen, the group's bourse filing showed.

Quarterly revenue fell 4.94% to RM372.82 million, from RM391.23 million in 1QFY2022 when the group had benefited from a surge in demand ahead of a price increase, said Amway.

The group declared a first dividend of five sen per share, the same rate as last year, payable on June 23.

Amway said it remains cautiously optimistic of delivering a flat to modest revenue growth for the full financial year.

The group said it will continue to be prudent in its operations with a focus on business sustainability, such as Amway Business Owner-centric (ABO) programmes, supply chain capacity uplift, new product launches and promotions as well as ongoing upgrades to the digital platform, and related delivery infrastructure.

“Collectively, the costs of these critical business investments, plus the rising costs generally due to inflation, will exert pressure on the operating margin for 2023,” it added.

Shares of Amway settled unchanged at RM5.32 on Wednesday (May 24), giving the group a market capitalisation of RM875 million.