KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 30 (Bernama) -- Investment  holding  company  Kumpulan Perangsang Selangor Berhad (“Perangsang Selangor” or “the Company” or “the Group”, Bursa:  5843;  Bloomberg:  KUPS  MK;  Reuters:  KPSB.KL),  having  unlocked  further  values from the core businesses in the manufacturing, trading and licensing sectors, posted an 86% increase  in  operating  profit  to  RM13.4  million  for  the  quarter  ended  30  June  2019,  as compared to RM7.2 million in the corresponding quarter last year.
 
With lower finance costs as compared to that in the previous quarter, Perangsang Selangor registered a marked increase in PAT, which almost doubled to RM4.7 million for the quarter ended 30 June 2019.
 
HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE QUARTER ENDED 30 JUNE 2019
 
Riding  on  the  success  of  increasing  the  focus  on  the  manufacturing  businesses  and continuous  business  improvement  at  all  subsidiary  companies,  Group  revenue  remained encouraging at RM159.2 million.
 
Manufacturing  businesses  contributed  RM109.6  million  or  approximately  70%  to  the Group’s  revenue,  compared  to  RM102.9  million  or  64%  contribution  in  the  corresponding period last year.
 
Century  Bond  Bhd  (“CBB”)  led  the  revenue  contribution  with  RM47.8  million  on  higher traction  from  the  carton division.   CPI  (Penang) Sdn  Bhd  (“CPI”)  maintained  its  influence, contributing   RM42.6   million   to   the   Group,   84%   of   which   was   from   the   engineering thermoplastic  (“ETP”)  business.   King  Koil  Manufacturing  West  Inc.  (“KKMW”)  contributed the  remaining  RM19.2  million  on  higher  capacity  utilisation  and  sales  from  top  premium lines.
 
Further contribution was derived from the trading business with Aqua-Flo Sdn Bhd (“Aqua- Flo”), returning RM26.5 million, which was slightly below the RM27.6 million it contributed in the corresponding quarter last year.  The slight decline was due to lower sales of chemicals, which was in turn a result of dry weather spell during the quarter. At RM26.5 million, Aqua- Flo contributed approximately 17% to the Group revenue.
 

Next, the licensing business King Koil Licensing Company LLC (“KKLC”) contributed RM8.0 million, turning in higher revenue as compared to RM7.4 million in the corresponding quarter last year.  Although domestic royalty income from the US market was flat, this was offset by higher international royalty income.   At RM8.0 million, KKLC contributed approximately 5% to the Group revenue.
 
Affected  by  the  unfavourable  operating  environment,  the  infrastructure  division  which  is represented  by  KPS-HCM  Sdn  Bhd  (“KPS-HCM”)  and  Smartpipe  Technology  Sdn  Bhd (“Smartpipe”) contributed lower to the Group’s revenue as compared to the corresponding quarter  last  year.   At  RM12.2 million  and  RM0.4  million  respectively,  revenue  contribution from  KPS-HCM  was  lesser  as  the  works  at  the  Pulau  Indah  Development  Project  are nearing completion while that from Smartpipe was affected by the delayed commencement of the pipe replacement project  it was awarded last year.   Having adjusted for inter-group sales,   revenue   contribution   from   the   infrastructure   division   was   RM12.5   million,   or approximately 8% to the Group revenue.
 
The remaining revenue contribution of RM2.6 million, or approximately 1%, was mainly from property  investment  which  collected  higher  rental  income  from  the  Summit  Hotel  KL  City Centre.
 
Having  supported  by  stronger  operating  profit  and  improved  fundamentals  through  the reduction of borrowings, the Group posted a healthy Profit Before Tax and Zakat (“PBTZ”) of RM9.8 million, against a normalised PBTZ of RM1.1 million in the corresponding quarter last year,  which  excludes  the  contribution  from  Syarikat  Pengeluar  Air  Selangor  Holdings Berhad.   The Group’s  Profit  After  Tax  came in at  RM4.7  million,  growing  almost  twice  as strongly compared to that in the previous quarter and turning around almost six-fold from the normalised RM1.2 million loss in the corresponding quarter last year.
 
Perangsang  Selangor’s  Managing  Director/Group  Chief  Executive  Officer,  Ahmad Fariz Hassan said:
 
“It’s  encouraging  to  see  that  our  efforts  in  ensuring  business  sustainability  have  made another good progress.  Having greater focus on the manufacturing and consistent effort in enhancing operational performance at all subsidiary companies are the key drivers for the stronger operating profit this quarter.”
 
In  terms  of  business  outlook,  Perangsang  Selangor  recently  completed  the  acquisition  of Toyoplas Manufacturing (M) Sdn Bhd (“Toyoplas”) for RM311.25 million, a strategic move to catapult earnings growth on a more robust dynamic, given Toyoplas’ potential in venturing into  new  markets  and  expanding  its  customer  base  geographically  across  key  industries such as the automotive, consumer appliances and multimedia.
 
By  securing  a  promising  business  catalyst  such  as  Toyoplas,  not  only  does  Perangsang Selangor  ensure  its  shareholders  of  a  much-augmented  earnings  base  in  the  immediate future but it also targets to solidify the core business further by providing synergy within the Group;  the  horizontal  integration  of  Toyoplas  is  envisaged  to  advance  the  Group’s  ETP business  in  the  areas  of  procurement,  capacity  optimisation  and  client  sourcing,  among others.

“In  line  with  our  vision,  the  corporate  exercise  is  aimed  at  anchoring  and  incrementing Perangsang Selangor’s future growth sustainably, and in so doing, expanding the Group’s profitability steadily”, Ahmad Fariz elaborated on the recent bolt-on acquisition and business prospect of Toyoplas, KPS’ another – yet bigger - foray into the ETP space.

About Kumpulan Perangsang Selangor Berhad (www.perangsangselangor.com)

Incorporated  on  11  August  1975,  Kumpulan  Perangsang  Selangor  Berhad  (“Perangsang Selangor” or “the Company” or “the Group”) is a public limited liability company listed on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia Securities Berhad under the Industrial Products & Services Sector. Perangsang Selangor has core investments in the Manufacturing sector, as well as businesses  in  the  Trading,  Licensing  and  Infrastructure  sectors.  While  strengthening  our business  to  optimise  returns,  Perangsang  Selangor  is  committed  to  providing  significant contributions towards sustainable development in the areas of economic, environment and social for the benefits of all stakeholders.

SOURCE : Kumpulan  Perangsang  Selangor  Berhad  

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Name : Zulkifli Mawardi
Investor Relations & Strategic Communication 
Tel : +603 5524 8444
Email : zulkiflimawardi@kps.com.my

--BERNAMA