KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 21): Vessel operator Perdana Petroleum Bhd posted its best quarterly results since 2014, as net profit near doubled in the quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023) to RM22.76 million, from RM11.41 million, supported by improved daily charter rates (DCR).

Also contributing to the performance was lower forex loss in the period. Quarterly earnings per share came in at 1.03 sen, from 0.51 sen in the same quarter last year.

The improved DCR, added with the increase in chartering of third-party vessels, helped boost revenue by 49.69% to RM103.92 million, from RM69.43 million.

The same DCR improvement was seen across the nine-month period ended Sept 30 (9MFY2023), which boosted performance despite an unchanged utilisation rate of 59% from a year ago.

Net profit for the period stood at RM23.15 million or 1.04 sen per share, against a net loss of RM9.13 million or 0.41 sen per share in 9MFY2022, as the operational improvements were slightly offset by wider forex loss in the nine-month period under review.

Revenue rose 52.17% to RM215.19 million, from RM141.42 million, Perdana Petroleum said.

The strong 9MFY2023 performance already exceeded FY2022’s full year bottom line of RM11.39 million. Perdana’s last profitable stint before the pandemic was in FY2014, when it booked a net profit of RM88.05 million, on revenue of RM347.22 million.

Shares of Perdana Petroleum closed one sen or 4% higher to 26 sen on Tuesday, giving it a market capitalisation of RM543.96 million. Year to date, the counter is up 13.5 sen or 108%.