By Khairul Khalid
Tan Kay Hock
George Kent (Malaysia) Bhd has posted profit after tax of RM12 million for the third quarter of financial year 2016 (3Q16), up 67% year-on-year on a couple of jobs bagged among others.
The company attributed its 3Q16 results to several milestones – winning the project delivery partner (with Malaysian Resources Corp Bhd) for the RM9 billion Light Rail Transit Line 3 (LRT3); being awarded the Hong Kong Meters tender by by Hong Kong Water Supplies Department for 600,000 units of water meters worth US$7.17 million (RM31.19 million); and timely delivery of Phase 1 of the Ampang Line LRT extension project.
“The strong results achieved is a testament to the hard work put in throughout the last three quarters,” said George Kent chairman Tan Kay Hock.
The RM9 billion LRT3 project is the biggest-ever win in George Kent history and is its first-ever venture into transport infrastructure.
George Kent’s revenue for 3Q16 was relatively flat at RM96.9 million, up just 1%. However, its profit before tax of RM42.9 million for nine months ended Oct 31, 2015 surpassed the RM40.3 million achieved for the 12 months ended Jan 31, 2015.
In a regulatory filing on Bursa Malaysia, the company added that the strong 3Q16 results were brought on by increased contributions from the group’s engineering and metering divisions as well as spillover effects from the weakened malaysian ringgit as the majority of metering export sales are denominated in the US dollar.
“The board has declared a second interim single-tier dividend of 1.5 sen per share amounting to RM4.51 million for the financial year ending Jan 31, 2016. This dividend will be paid on Jan 26, 2016 to shareholders whose names appear in the Record of Depositors on Jan 5, 2016.
Including the first interim single-tier dividend of 2 sen per share paid on Nov 12, 2015, in ringgit term, the total interim dividend paid/payable amounting to RM10.5 million is 9% higher when compared to the total interim dividend of RM9.6 million paid for the corresponding period last year,” said George Kent in the statement.
George Kent is a metering and engineering company with core businesses focused on the water industry and the delivery of specialised infrastructure projects. For the past 80 years, it has provided a broad range of water metering solutions for households, industrial and plant use.
George Kent shares closed trading today at RM1.64, down 5 sen.
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