IJM may make 50 sen-a-share capital payout

IJM Corp Bhd, the country's second biggest builder, may soon declare a capital repayment, while its property unit is close to finalising as many as two en-bloc sales that could help boost profits, UBS Investment Research says in a report."We estimate a pending capital repayment of 50 sen a share and a recurring dividend of 15 sen a share," the investment house said, without disclosing the basis of its estimate.In 2007, IJM paid a dividend of 15 sen a share, of which five sen a share was in the form of a special cash payment.UBS also believes there is potential earnings upside from en-bloc property transactions from IJM's 65 per cent-owned property unit, IJM Land. "According to management, it is finalising two en-bloc commercial transactions worth RM400 million. Our earnings estimates do not assume any en-bloc transactions. "We estimate these two transactions could add RM70 to RM80 million to our financial year 2009 net profit forecast of RM446 million, if they go through," the UBS report said. Read more

(New Straits Times 28-3-2008)

IJM: Builders to maintain profits

IJM Corp, Malaysia’s second-biggest builder, said the nation’s construction companies will be able to maintain profits for at least two years, dismissing concern that the government’s poll losses will slow spending on public works.Opposition victories in five states won’t hamper IJM’s earnings, managing director Krishnan Tan told reporters today at an investor conference in Kuala Lumpur organised by the Malaysian stock exchange.“It’s not peaking,” Tan said. “Awards may peak but jobs take two to three years to finish so one has to be clear that in terms of revenue spins, they’ll be on for two to three years.”Shares of Malaysian builders including IJM have plunged on fears Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s spending plan for roads, bridges and ports may be delayed after the ruling coalition lost its two-third parliamentary majority. The Kuala Lumpur Construction Index has dropped 9.4 per cent since March 8. “Most of the big construction companies already have substantial order books that will take them to two years of earnings,” Tan said. “If there’s a delay, it will be a delay in order-book enhancement. It shouldn’t affect the earnings in immediate terms.”Many of the country’s large construction contracts have yet to be awarded, “so I don’t see how it can peak,” he said, referring to new orders.

Malton going into more high-end projects

MALTON Bhd is making efforts to further strengthen its branding in the residential and commercial property segments with a line-up of more exciting projects over the next two to three years.The company is looking at adding more value to its land bank of more than 600 acres in various parts of the country. “At present, some 70% of the company's projects are high-end while 30% are projects in the various existing townships, including in Puchong and Bukit Rimau, Shah Alam,” chief operating officer Yeoh Teng Tatt told StarBiz. Read more

(The Star 17-3-2008)

Revamped Magna Prima on stronger footing

SECOND board construction player Magna Prima Bhd is on a much better footing from three years ago when it was making losses. With a turnaround plan in place after a reshuffling of the top management and the board of directors, the company turned in a net profit of RM26.58mil for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2007 (FY07) compared to a net profit of RM119,000 the previous year. Revenue increased by 326% to RM344.44mil. Magna Prima has three current projects: the 88-acre leasehold Metro Prima in Kepong, a joint venture with landowner Kuala Lumpur City Hall that is almost completed; The Avare, a freehold 41-storey luxury condominium project located in the vicinity of KLCC; and the three-acre leasehold MagnaVille in Selayang comprising three blocks of 22-storey condominiums. Read more

(The Star 17-3-2008)

Guocoland: KFH option on Singapore apartments lapses

PETALING JAYA: Kuwait Finance House (M) Bhd (KFH) is believed to have decided not to exercise the option on 97 apartments at the 210-unit Goodwood Residence development in downtown Singapore, given the softening in the city-state's private residential property market. The apartments were supposed to be sold to a fund managed by KFH for US$818.4mil, or at S$3,000 per sq ft. Goodwood Residence, developed by Guocoland Ltd, is a premier residential development on a 24,845-sq-m freehold plot fronting Goodwood Hill. A Guocoland statement issued on Monday said the options were not exercised and had lapsed. “Both parties are presently in discussions, with a view to granting fresh options for units in the development,” it said, adding that the private residential property market in Singapore was currently cautious. KFH did not respond to StarBiz's queries. Read more

(12-3-2008 The Star)

Wah Seong set to get RM800mil contracts

THINGS are still looking good for Wah Seong Corp Bhd despite the recent loss of the Nord Stream contract. The group is on the verge of clinching some RM700mil to RM800mil worth of oil and gas (O&G) contracts. Deputy group managing director Giancarlo Maccagno said Wah Seong was in the midst of finalising a host of pipeline construction, manufacturing and coating contracts. “We are confident the contracts would be signed within the next two to three weeks,” he told StarBiz. The contracts that are seen to be already in the bag for Wah Seong are:
·Two pipeline construction contracts worth RM150mil and RM75mil each in Australia,
·Two pipe-coating contracts totalling RM140mil to RM150mil in Turkmenistan and Malaysia, and
·The RM400mil pipe manufacturing and coating contract for the Sabah Sarawak Gas Pipeline (Bintulu contract).
The upcoming contracts would boost the group's order book, which stands at RM1.6bil to date, to more than RM2bil. Most of the contracts would also contribute to bottom line this year.

(The Star 4-3-2008)

Muhibbah Engr expects double-digit profit growth

(New Straits Times 3-3-2008)

Piccolo sets itself apart

(The Star 3-3-2008)

Company a household name in Sabah

(The Star 3-3-2008)

Boustead nets RM179m in Q4

DIVERSIFIED Boustead Holdings Bhd said its fourth quarter net profit rose eight per cent as better sales were offset by higher interest and tax charges. It is bullish of its performance this year, which will be driven by strong palm oil prices and better demand for its properties.Boustead also expects its banking arm, Affin Holdings Bhd, to do better this year."Property Division will continue to be a major profit contributor, with profit deriving mainly from the Mutiara Damansara and Mutiara Rini Johor projects."Affin Group is expected to produce better results for the coming year," it said in a statement to Bursa Malaysia yesterday. Read more

(New Straits Times 1-3-2008)

Magna Prima on track to pay third dividend

KUALA LUMPUR: Property firm Magna Prima Bhd will allocate a fifth of its fiscal 2007 net profit as dividends in anticipation of higher earnings from some RM2 billion worth of projects in hand, said its chief executive Lim Ching Choy.The dividend payout will be Magna Prima’s third since its listing in Malaysia some 11 years ago. Magna Prima shareholders approved yesterday the developer’s plan to buy the Jalan Kuching site for RM57.9 million. Magna Prima shares rose 1% or 5 sen to end at RM5.25.

(9-1-2008 The Edge)