KUALA LUMPUR (May 30): Shares in IJM Corp Bhd (KL:IJM) hit a record high in early trade on Thursday after the construction-and-property company reported better-than-expected results for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2024 (4QFY2024).

The stock surged as much as 11.42% or 29 sen to a high of RM2.83 per share, before paring some gains to trade at RM2.79, still up 25 sen or 9.84% at the noon break, making it the second top gainer on Bursa Malaysia. The counter saw some 17.3 million shares change hands.

At RM2.79, IJM Corp's market capitalisation stood at RM10.18 billion.

On Wednesday, IJM Corp announced its net profit for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2024 (4QFY2024) leapt over 10-fold to RM305.5 million from RM23.1 million a year earlier, thanks to a sharp rise in other operating income.

The group’s other operating income soared to RM241.79 million from RM71 million in the previous corresponding quarter.

Quarterly revenue jumped 32.6% to RM1.76 billion versus RM1.33 billion previously, driven by improvements across all segments except its infrastructure toll division.

Analysts, meanwhile, anticipate that IJM Corp’s earnings will continue the strong performance in FY2025, notably in the construction sector, as the group is bullish on winning RM5 billion in construction jobs.

"IJM targets RM5 billion in job wins in FY2025. It is eyeing, among others, the New Pantai Expressway (NPE) expansion, a civil servant housing project in Nusantara, building jobs for semiconductor foundries and data centres, and infrastructure projects such as Penang LRT, Kuching ART Blue Line, and Sarawak Sabah Link," Kenanga Research said in a note to clients, adding that it understands the group is close to securing one data centre project soon.

IJM Corp has 13 “buy” calls and four “hold” calls, with a 12-month target price of RM2.77, according to Bloomberg data.

According to Hong Leong Investment Bank (HLIB), with unbilled sales of RM2.6 billion, the group's property division is also poised to continue its strong performance.

"The sales target for FY2025 is set at RM2.2 billion, backed by RM3.9 billion in planned launches. The group will also embark on Royal Mint Garden Phase 2, with construction set to commence in September this year. The project consists of a 463-bedroom aparthotel and 79 residential units to be sold to the public," HLIB added.