Malaysia: Heineken Malaysia returns to black in second quarter ended June 30
Heineken Malaysia Bhd returned to the black for the second quarter ended June 30, 2021 (2QFY21), The Edge Markets reported on August 26.
The company posted a net profit of RM25.27 million for 2QFY21, compared to a net loss of RM18.19 million a year earlier.
Revenue for the quarter rose 37.71% to RM349.42 million from RM253.74 million for the same period a year ago.
For the six-month period (1HFY21), net profit soared 154.86% to RM98.81 million from RM38.77 million a year earlier, while revenue grew 16.57% to RM897.16 million from RM769.63 million.
The group also declared an interim dividend of 15 sen per share for FY21, payable on Nov 18.
CGS-CIMB Research upgraded the stock to an "add" from a "hold" today. It kept its target price (TP) unchanged at RM24.20.
The research house in a report said this was due to the stock’s attractive valuation (its calendar year 2022 forecast price-earnings is at an 11% discount to its five-year mean of 27 times), a strong balance sheet (net cash of RM105.7 million as at end-2QFY21) and benefits from the potential recovery in economic activities nationwide, especially in the on-trade segment.
“As of Aug 20, Heineken Malaysia said that 80% of its employees were fully vaccinated. It aims to fully vaccinate all its essential workers by Sept 21.
"In addition, Heineken Malaysia has implemented various Covid-19 screening measures at its plants, such as Covid-19 testing of all on-site employees and contractors on a biweekly basis. Also, the company has stated that its brewery is fully automated, which requires only a minimal number of essential workers to be on site,” the research house added.
On August 26, Heineken Malaysia told media and analysts that it was taking a cautious view on the outlook for the financial year ending Dec 31, 2021 (FY21) due to the possibility that the highly infectious Delta variant of Covid-19 may erode consumer confidence and affect the brewer’s recovery path ahead.
Tilbage
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