MQ Market Updates - 22 June 2023

MQ Trader

Publish date: Thu, 22 Jun 2023, 05:12 PM

Eco World Development Group Bhd (EcoWorld) reported a 37.26% increase in its net profit for the second quarter ended April 30, 2023 (2QFY2023) to RM62.69 million, from RM45.67 million a year ago, thanks to higher contributions from its Malaysian joint ventures (JVs). In a Bursa Malaysia filing on Thursday (June 22), the group said the profits from its local JV projects — namely Eco Grandeur, Eco Business Park (EBP) V, Eco Ardence and Eco Horizon — amounted to RM24.05 million for the quarter, up 47.41% from 2QFY2022. (TheEdge)

Genting Malaysia Berhad today announced that a plan for Resorts World Miami LLC and Genting Florida LLC to sell its Miami Herald land for US$1.2 billion to Smart Miami City LLC has fallen through. The Miami Herald land consists of four parcels of land in Miami measuring an aggregate land area of 673,691 square feet or 15.47 acres. (NST)

Uzma Bhd has secured two contracts worth RM450mil from PETRONAS Carigali Sdn Bhd (PCSB) for the provision of hydraulic workover units (HWUs) and plug and abandonment for PCSB’s well. In a filing with Bursa Mlaaysia, Uzma said its wholly owned subsidiary, Uzma Engineering Sdn Bhd, had secured both the contracts for a three-year duration effective May 17, 2023 till May 16, 2026, with an option to extend for an additional year. (TheStar)

Pos Malaysia Bhd, the national post and parcel service provider, has today announced its strategic partnership with Yinson GreenTech for the launch of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations. The charging stations are powered by chargEV, the country's largest EV charging network and charge point operator. (NST)

UEM Sunrise Bhd has tied up with Greystar Real Estate Partners LLC to develop a build-to-rent (BTR) project worth A$277mil (RM881mil) in the inner-Melbourne suburb of Collingwood. UEM Sunrise is the first local developer to do a BTR project in Australia in a bid to strengthen the group’s presence there. In a statement yesterday, UEM Sunrise noted the agreement will see Greystar be the investor and eventual owner-operator of the proposed BTR development through a fund-through structure while UEM Sunrise act as the developer and delivery partner. (TheStar)

Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) and Malakoff Corporation Berhad joint venture Kapar Energy Ventures Sdn Bhd has settled a RM596 million tax bill from Inland Revenue Board Malaysia (IRB) out of court. "Pursuant to an out-of-court settlement with the IRB, Kapar Energy Ventures has withdrawn the judicial review application before the High Court on 21 June 2023. The out-of-court settlement between Kapar Energy Ventures and the IRB, has no material impact to TNB's financial position," the company said in its filing with Bursa Malaysia Securities. (NST)

AMMB Holdings Bhd (AmBank Group), the country's sixth-largest banking group, is again poised to draw attention on the mergers and acquisitions (M&A) front. Following recent developments and shifts in the financial industry landscape, Kenanga Research said AmBank has emerged as a potential player in the ongoing wave of consolidation within the sector. (NST)

Jiankun International Bhd has inked a memorandum of understanding with Dermaga Utama Sdn Bhd, for the purcahse of Unifield International College (UIC) for RM13mil. In a statement yesterday, Jiankun added it had marked the groundbreaking of its innovative 600-unit serviced apartment property development project which will host UIC’s new campus. The job will be completed by end 2026. (TheStar)

Jade Marvel Group Bhd has proposed the issuance of up to 80,000,000 new redeemable convertible preference shares (RCPS) at the issue price of RM1 per RCPS to Sycamore Equity Fund. In a filing with Bursa Malaysia yesterday, Jade Marvel said the RCPS will be issued in 320 equal tranches of 250,000 RCPS with a principal amount of RM250,000 for each tranche. (TheStar)

Eversendai Corporation Bhd's subsidiary in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Eversendai Offshore RMC FZE (Eversendai) has signed a strategic collaboration agreement (SCA) with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), which is wholly owned by the Abu Dhabi Government. Through this SCA, it is expected the fabrication business and its whole supply chain will be assured work from ADNOC. (NST)

Ann Joo Resources Bhd’s 55% indirect subsidiary, Konsortia Etiqa Sdn Bhd (KESB), has acquired 102,000 shares in Perfect Channel Sdn Bhd (PCSB) from Kinsteel Bhd for RM10mil cash. In a filing with Bursa Malaysia yesterday, Ann Joo added KESB had also subscribed to 100 million new shares in PCSB for RM100,000, thereby taking KESB’s stake in PCSB to 99.9%. (TheStar)

KPJ Healthcare Bhd is targeting strong growth for the financial year ending Dec 31, 2023 (FY2023), supported by growing inpatient volumes, as well as a higher number of hospital beds, and improvement in bed occupancy rate. “We see [the number] of patients, especially for elective treatment, is coming back. With the reopening of the borders, we are also seeing foreign patients coming in. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, we see the trend will continue,” the group’s chairman Datuk Md Arif Mahmood said on Thursday (June 22).

Pertama Digital Bhd is optimistic about returning to the black in financial year (FY) 2024. Group chief executive officer Saifullah (Saify) Akhtar said that after the disposal of its entire stake in its China-based textile subsidiary (Be Top Group Ltd) in August 2022, the company is reclassifying its business as a technology business, which opens up more opportunities in attracting new business, especially from the government and local start-ups. (TheStar)

Mah Sing Group Bhd is confident of achieving its 2023 sales target of RM2.2 billion property sales, having locked in RM600.6 million sales in the first quarter of 2023 (1Q FY2023). Founder and group managing director Tan Sri Leong Hoy Kum said the property developer remained committed to its strategic focus on the M Series and upcoming launches, including M Nova, M Minori, M Senyum, Meridin East, M Panora, and M Sinar. (TheStar)

Glomac Bhd expects its financial year 2024 (FY24) to be another challenging year amidst growing concerns on inflation, labour shortage, rising interest rates and material costs that are expected to affect the property sector. For the fourth quarter ended April 30, 2023 (4Q23), the property developer and management company saw its revenue increasing 78% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM131.1mil, underpinned by higher revenue from its property development and property investment segments. (TheStar)

There could be upsides to Bumi Armada Bhd's valuations as the offshore services provider's shares have taken a beating following news of the shutdown in the Armada Kraken floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel on June 2, 2023. Bumi Armada announced yesterday that production levels at the facility had returned to about 60% of pre-shutdown level, while work, testing and investigations were ongoing to stabilise and bring the vessel’s operational performance back to pre-shutdown level. (TheStar)

Impacted by the downcycle in the semiconductor sector, UWC Bhd posted a below-than-expected third-quarter results for financial year 2023 (3Q23), says Hong Leong Investment Bank (HLIB) Research. The group’s 3Q23 revenue of RM48mil fell 48% quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q) and 45% year-on-year (y-o-y), yielding a core net profit of RM3mil (minus 88% q-o-q, minus 89% y-o-y), bringing the nine-month-period sum to RM52mil. (TheStar)

Public Investment Bank Bhd (PublicInvest) has made no change to its earnings estimates following UEM Sunrise Bhd's plans to develop the first 'Build-to-Rent' (BTR) project in Melbourne, Australia citing potential management fees which will only be recognised in financial year 2027 (FY27) onwards. UEM Sunrise Bhd yesterday announced in a filing with Bursa Malaysia Securities that it plans to develop the first BRT project in Melbourne with an estimated total transaction value of about A$277 million (RM881 million), in partnership with Greystar Real Estate Partners. (NST)

Maybank Investment Bank Bhd (Maybank IB) has initiated coverage of ITMAX System Bhd, with a “buy” rating and a target price (TP) of RM1.71. The research house, in a note on Tuesday (June 20), said it sees ITMAX as having niche exposure to the traffic and network surveillance industry, as well as a long track record of providing smart city solutions for both government agencies and commercial clients. (TheEdge)

Source: New Straits Times, The Edge Markets, The Star 22 June 2023