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Daily Archives: 14 Nov 2009

F&N’s Q4 earnings treble to $190.6m

Posted on 14 Nov 2009 | Comments Off

Property division ends on high note, buoyed in part by sale of Inpoint Mall

FRASER and Neave’s net profit nearly tripled from $66.7 million to $190.6 million for the last quarter of the fiscal year ended Sept 30.

Revenue for the fourth quarter rose 23 per cent from $1.3 billion to $1.6 billion, driven by the group’s expansion activities.

For the entire fiscal year, the group saw a 17.5 per cent dip in net profit from $436 million to $359 million, compared to restated figures from the previous fiscal year.

However, excluding the fair value adjustment of investment properties and exceptional items, net income for the fiscal year stood at $466 million – a 25 per cent increase over the previous corresponding period.

Revenue for the year inched up 7 per cent to $5.3 billion.

For the quarter, the group’s property division finished on a high note, buoyed by the sale of Inpoint Mall and positive rental reversions and high occupancy rates from commercial assets.

The property division’s revenue and earnings rose 76 per cent and 48 per cent respectively for the quarter, the strongest improvement for the year.

‘The divestments of non-core assets like Inpoint Mall and the Haitang Bay site, for example, enabled us to recycle the capital into new projects with higher returns,’ said chairman of Fraser and Neave Lee Hsien Yang.

‘The closure and sale of our dairy facilities in Vietnam and China are a result of the group’s plan to exit businesses that we assess unable to provide adequate returns for our efforts.’ he said.

The group’s soft drinks divisions revenue grew 7 per cent, driven by promotional activities and a better product mix, while its dairies revenue fell 6 per cent.

The board has recommended a final dividend of 10.5 cents per share, bringing the total dividend for the year to 13.5 cents, the same as the previous year.

The 13.5 cents represents a payout of 40 per cent of attributable profit, lower than last year’s payout of 51 per cent.

‘Although we have successfully navigated the credit crunch and market illiquidity, the global market condition remains fragile. The board feels that it therefore prudent for the group to maintain dividend at the same level,’ Mr Lee said.

Earnings per share for the group stood at 25.8 cents compared to 31.2 cents a year ago, after taking into account fair value adjustments and exceptional items.

The group’s shares closed two cents higher at $3.85 yesterday.

Source : Business Times – 13 Nov 2009

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Tagged Fraser and Neave (F&N)

Ho Bee posts record 9-month profit

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HO BEE Investment posted a strong increase in third-quarter net earnings, lifting its top and bottom lines for the first nine months past the record showing for full year 2007.

Net profit for the quarter ended Sept 30 rose to $99.3 million from $18.7 million for Q3 last year. Revenue swelled from $52.5 million to $209.2 million, largely as a result of a big chunk of income booked for the Orange Grove Residences project, which was completed in July.

Ho Bee’s first nine months net profit jumped from $81.8 million to $293.9 million. Revenue quadrupled from $263.5 million to $1.06 billion. The numbers surpass the full-year 2007 net earnings of about $272 million and revenue of $596 million.

The strong report-card for the first nine months was achieved despite the fact that Ho Bee booked some $110 million of writedowns in Q2 this year for fair-value changes of investment and development properties.

‘The group’s revenue and earnings for the next quarter will remain positive,’ said Ho Bee chairman and CEO Chua Thian Poh.

Besides Orange Grove Residences, other projects that contributed to the group’s performance in the Jan to Sept period include Vertis in the Amber Road area, Quinterra at Holland Road, and The Coast condo and Paradise Island villas at Sentosa Cove. Ho Bee sold the last of 29 villas at Paradise Island in August for $22 million. All five projects received Temporary Occupation Permit in the first nine months of this year. That’s when developers book a chunk of earnings from units sold in residential property developments.

Collections from buyers from these projects boosted Ho Bee’s coffers. It enjoyed a whopping $896 million net cashflow from operating activities in the first nine months of 2009. This enabled it to repay nearly $700 million of borrowings this year, trimming group borrowings from about $1.15 billion at end-2008 to $457 million at end-Sept 2009. Cash and cash equivalents stood at $161.6 million at end-Sept 2009, up from $45.1 million at end-2008. Net gearing fell to a low of 0.26 times at end-Sept 2009 from 1.26 times at end-2008.

Ho Bee’s net asset value per share appreciated from $1.20 at end-2008 to $1.56 at end-Sept 2009. On the stockmarket yesterday, the counter ended three cents higher at $1.40.

Ho Bee has released two projects in the current quarter – Trilight at Newton Road and Parvis at Holland Hill. The latter is a joint project with MCL Land. So far, 61 Trilight units have been sold since its launch in October and 55 units sold at Parvis, which was released this month.

Next year, Ho Bee is expected to launch a 151-unit condo project at Sentosa Cove named Seascape. The group has another project – a 304-unit condo – in the upscale waterfront housing area which it’s developing on the Pinnacle Collection site. This could possibly be released late next year. Ho Bee is developing both projects jointly with Malaysia’s IOI group.

Source : Business Times – 13 Nov 2009