Funds keen on acquiring Muhibbah Engineering's airport concessionaires
By KATHY FONG
The Star (Malaysia)
KUALA LUMPUR: Foreign private equity funds are keen on acquiring Muhibbah Engineering (M) Bhd's airport concessionaires in Cambodia and its shipyard business.
The group, whose net profit rose 26% year-on-year to RM22.3mil for the second quarter ended June 30, sees such foreign interest as a compliment that reflects Muhibbah's future prospects.
However, it did not intend to hive off any of its businesses as yet, said the group chief financial officer Shirleen Lee.
"We told them to buy Muhibbah shares in order to tap onto our growth, instead of our businesses directly," Lee told analysts and the media in a briefing on Wednesday.
According to Lee, foreign shareholding in Muhibbah was about 38% last week versus local institutional funds' interest of about 12%.
Muhibbah share price slid to a low of RM5.85 amid the recent selling down in the equity markets worldwide.
Lee, however, noticed that some foreign investors had taken the opportunities to accumulate the stock, which was last traded at RM8.20 before Wednesday's suspension.
Lee noted that the overwhelming interest from foreign investors was due mainly to the group's presence in the international arena.
Muhibbah had the capacity and capability to ride on the current oil & gas boom via its crane and shipyard businesses, she added.
The group has an order book of RM3.2bil, comprising RM2.23bil from infrastructure construction division, RM573mil from cranes division and RM395mil from shipyard division.
About 52% of the order book is derived from the oil and gas industry.
In July, Muhibbah secured RM1.1bil contract for the construction of the South Klang Valley Expressway. Muhibbah's revenue rose nearly 58% to RM347.3mil for the second quarter ended June, from RM220.3mil in the previous corresponding period.
Pre-tax profit was 38% higher at RM28.2mil against RM20.4mil while diluted earnings per share (EPS) expanded 47% to 11.20 sen from 7.59 sen a year ago.
For the six month ended June 30, the group posted net profit of RM38.9mil, up 36% from RM28.5mil a year ago.
Revenue grew to RM600mil from RM515.4mil previously. Diluted EPS soared to 20.31 sen from 14.28 sen previously.
The group, whose net profit rose 26% year-on-year to RM22.3mil for the second quarter ended June 30, sees such foreign interest as a compliment that reflects Muhibbah's future prospects.
However, it did not intend to hive off any of its businesses as yet, said the group chief financial officer Shirleen Lee.
"We told them to buy Muhibbah shares in order to tap onto our growth, instead of our businesses directly," Lee told analysts and the media in a briefing on Wednesday.
According to Lee, foreign shareholding in Muhibbah was about 38% last week versus local institutional funds' interest of about 12%.
Muhibbah share price slid to a low of RM5.85 amid the recent selling down in the equity markets worldwide.
Lee, however, noticed that some foreign investors had taken the opportunities to accumulate the stock, which was last traded at RM8.20 before Wednesday's suspension.
Lee noted that the overwhelming interest from foreign investors was due mainly to the group's presence in the international arena.
Muhibbah had the capacity and capability to ride on the current oil & gas boom via its crane and shipyard businesses, she added.
The group has an order book of RM3.2bil, comprising RM2.23bil from infrastructure construction division, RM573mil from cranes division and RM395mil from shipyard division.
About 52% of the order book is derived from the oil and gas industry.
In July, Muhibbah secured RM1.1bil contract for the construction of the South Klang Valley Expressway. Muhibbah's revenue rose nearly 58% to RM347.3mil for the second quarter ended June, from RM220.3mil in the previous corresponding period.
Pre-tax profit was 38% higher at RM28.2mil against RM20.4mil while diluted earnings per share (EPS) expanded 47% to 11.20 sen from 7.59 sen a year ago.
For the six month ended June 30, the group posted net profit of RM38.9mil, up 36% from RM28.5mil a year ago.
Revenue grew to RM600mil from RM515.4mil previously. Diluted EPS soared to 20.31 sen from 14.28 sen previously.
1 comment:
What happen to the mega project to modify Kg Chhang's airport as the biggest cargo/repair center in S/E Asia?
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