SINGAPORE - The following companies saw new developments that may affect trading of their shares on Wednesday (Aug 14):
Olam International: The agri and food giant's net profit shrank 34.5 per cent to $61.5 million for its second quarter ended June 30, from $94 million a year ago. This was due to higher depreciation and amortisation, net finance costs and exceptional losses, Olam said on Wednesday morning. Olam adopted the new accounting standard SFRS(I) 16 with effect from Jan 1, 2019, which had a net impact of negative $6.6 million on the second quarter's bottomline. Revenue grew 15.7 per cent to $8.6 billion during the three months to June 30. Earnings per share came in at 1.49 cents for the quarter, down from 2.52 cents in the year-ago period. Shares of Olam International were down two cents or 1.03 per cent to $1.93 at Tuesday's close, before the results were released.
Wilmar International: Agri giant Wilmar International's net profit for the second quarter fell 52 per cent to US$151 million from a restated US$316.4 million a year ago, on the back of lower soybean crush margins, weaker showing by associates and sugar business as well as higher finance cost. Revenue was 9 per cent lower at US$9.8 billion from US$10.8 billion a year ago, due to lower commodity prices which were partially offset by a nearly 4 per cent jump in sales volume. Earnings per share fell to 2.4 US cents versus five US cents a year ago. The group has declared an interim dividend of three cents per share, lower than 3.5 cents per share recommended in the previous year's corresponding quarter. Wilmar shares finished higher by three cents or 0.8 per cent at $4.05 on Tuesday, before the release of its financial results.
Singapore Technologies Engineering: ST Engineering on Wednesday posted an 18 per cent rise in second-quarter net profit to $138.2 million for the three months ended June 30, up from $117.5 million a year ago, on the back of higher earnings from its marine sector. Earnings per share for the quarter came in at 4.43 cents, versus 3.77 cents for the preceding year. Revenue for the quarter also rose 8 per cent to $1.78 billion, thanks to its Aerospace sector, with newly acquired MRAS as the main contributor. ST Engineering shares closed at $4.27 on Tuesday, up 1.2 per cent, or five cents.
Yanlord Land: China-based property developer Yanlord Land on Tuesday said net profit narrowed another quarter, with second-quarter earnings of 865.3 million yuan ($170 million), down 41 per cent from the same period a year ago. Revenue for the quarter ended June 30 fell 58 per cent to 4.1 billion yuan, due to the decrease in gross floor area delivered, in line with the group's delivery schedule for the second quarter. Earnings per share were 44.80 yuan cents, down from 76.53 yuan cents in the same period a year earlier. The counter closed at $1.13 on Tuesday, down 4.2 per cent, or five cents, before the release of its results.
OUE Limited: Property developer OUE on Tuesday posted a ballooning in net profit to $60.9 million for its second quarter ended June 30. This was more than 10 times the $5.3 million that it reaped a year ago. This was mainly due to a one-off $136.6 million gain on disposal of Aquamarina Hotel, which owns Marina Mandarin Singapore. Revenue rose 89 per cent to $285.3 million, mainly due to higher contributions from the development property divisions, as the period saw the completion of OUE Twin Peaks units sold under deferred payment schemes. The board has proposed an interim tax-exempt dividend of one cent per share, similar to a year ago. This will be paid on Sept 26. OUE shares closed at $1.47 on Tuesday, down 2 per cent, or three cents, before the release of its financial results.
Manulife US Reit: Contributions from its newly acquired properties lent a boost to Manulife US Reit's second-quarter distribution per unit (DPU), which rose to 1.53 US cents from 1.3 US cents a year ago. The acquisitions include Centrepointe, a two-tower Class A office building in Washington DC, 1750 Pennsylvania Avenue also in Washington DC, and the Phipps Tower in Buckhead, Atlanta. Gross revenue in Q2 rose 33.2 per cent to US$43.3 million, while net property income rose 33.8 per cent to US$27.3 million. Income available for distribution rose 25 per cent to US$20.6 million. Units of the Reit closed one US cent, or 1.1 per cent higher at 88.5 US cents on Tuesday, before the release of its results.
Metro Holdings: Mainboard-listed Metro on Tuesday posted a 47.5 per cent drop in first-quarter net profit to $10.6 million on the back of lower fair-value gains from investments, and weaker contributions from joint ventures. Earnings per share for the quarter ended June 30 was 1.3 cents, down from 2.4 cents for the same period a year ago. Revenue for the quarter rose 85.4 per cent to $55.9 million, although cost of revenue also surged 74.6 per cent to $51.7 million. The counter closed at 96.5 cents on Tuesday, down 0.5 per cent, or 0.5 cent before its results announcement.
Delfi: Confectionery maker Delfi on Tuesday posted a 19.4 per cent jump in net profit to US$6.1 million for the second quarter, in line with higher sales. The company has proposed an interim dividend of 1.73 cents per share, up from 1.47 cents in the previous year. Revenue for the quarter ended June 30 rose 3 per cent to US$112.3 million as Delfi sold more products from its own brands - the segment forms over 65 per cent of the group's revenue - and sales in Indonesia, its main market, grew. Second-quarter earnings per share (including exceptional items) were one US cent, up from 0.84 cent a year ago. Delfi shares closed down 1.6 per cent or two cents at $1.24 on Tuesday, before the results were announced.
Straco Corporation: Straco Corporation, a developer and operator of tourism-related attractions, on Tuesday posted a 17 per cent drop in net profit to $9 million for its second quarter ended June 30, from $10.8 million in the year-ago quarter. Group revenue fell 6.5 per cent to $26.4 million, mainly due to lower revenue contributed by its China attractions - Shanghai Ocean Aquarium, Underwater World Xiamen and Lintong Lixing Cable-Car - on lower visitor numbers. Separately, the company on Tuesday also announced the appointment of former politician Teo Ser Luck as a non-executive independent director. The counter last traded at 75 cents on Aug 8, up 2 per cent, or 1.5 cents.
Cosco Shipping International (Singapore): Mainboard-listed Cosco on Tuesday announced its second-quarter net profit fell 30 per cent to $1.7 million, alongside a new appointment and acquisitions. Revenue for the quarter rose 3 per cent to $41.2 million, driven by its logistics and shipping segments, but was outpaced by cost of sales, which increased 6 per cent to $31.4 million. Earnings per share were 0.08 cent, down from 0.11 cent for the same period a year ago. On Tuesday, Cosco also announced that Wang Yu Hang, its non-independent non-executive director, has resigned due to "other personal commitments". Mr Wang had also been chairman of the board. Another board member, Gu Jing Song, will replace him as chairman. Cosco shares closed down 3.45 per cent or $0.01 at $0.28 on Tuesday before the announcements.
BreadTalk Group: The group chief executive officer (CEO) of BreadTalk Group, Chu Heng Hwee, will leave the company with effect from Dec 31, 2019. The 49-year-old is quitting for "personal and health reasons", the mainboard-listed food and beverage operator said in a bourse filing on Wednesday morning. Upon Mr Chu's departure, BreadTalk's group executive chairman, George Quek Meng Tong, will undertake the roles and responsibilities of the group CEO. His resignation comes almost two weeks after BreadTalk reported a plunge in its second-quarter net profit amid mounting costs. Net profit was more than halved, falling 57.9 per cent year on year to $1.02 million for the three months to June 30, even as revenue grew 9.8 per cent to $163.3 million. The bottom-line hit came from a surge in distribution and selling expenses. Shares of the company were up one cent or 1.47 per cent to $0.69 on an ex-dividend basis at Tuesday's close.
Centurion Corporation: Worker dormitory and student accommodation company Centurion Corporation on Tuesday posted a 4 per cent increase in net profit to $10.2 million for its second quarter ended June 30, on the back of an 8 per cent increase in revenue to $32.9 million. The higher revenue was mainly due to contribution from the group's newly added properties such as dwell East End Adelaide in Australia, and dwell Princess Street in the United Kingdom. Higher occupancy rates achieved at its Singapore workers' accommodation also contributed to the better revenue performance. The board has declared an interim dividend of one cent per share for shareholders in Singapore, which will be paid on Sept 12. The counter closed flat at 41 cents on Tuesday, before the release of its financial results.
PropNex: Real estate agency PropNex saw its bottomline shrink in its fiscal second quarter, as it took in lower commission income while bearing higher staff costs and depreciation expenses. Revenue for the three months ended June 30 fell 24 per cent to $92.1 million from $121.6 million the year before. PropNex's net profit attributable to shareholders fell 12 per cent to $3.7 million from $4.2 million. Earnings per share were one cent, compared to 1.36 cents the year before. The company has declared a dividend of 1.25 cents per share for the period. It did not pay out a dividend the year before. PropNex shares ended 2 per cent or one cent down at 49.5 cents on Tuesday.
CapitaLand, CapitaLand Retail China Trust (CRCT): The manager of CRCT on Wednesday morning said the 105 million new CRCT units to be issued at $1.469 per unit pursuant to its private placement, will be listed on the mainboard of the Singapore Exchange at 9am today. The final price represents a 5.2 per cent discount to the trust's Aug 1 closing price of $1.55. CRCT previously noted that it has raised $154.3 million via the private placement that was three times subscribed. Following the placement, the total number of CRCT units in issue will be about 1.1 billion.
KrisEnergy: KrisEnergy has requested for a trading suspension with immediate effect, the company announced in a bourse filing on Wednesday morning before the market open. "As previously disclosed in various announcements by the company, the group is over-geared and under-equitised, and has appointed advisors to formally review and implement all available options to the group in order to improve the financial condition of the group, which is critical. Accordingly, the board has recommended that trading of the group securities be suspended as the group presses on to engage the broader stakeholder groups to explore restructuring options," KrisEnergy said.
