Gamuda shares surge on better Q2 results

PETALING JAYA: Shares in Gamuda Bhd yesterday climbed the most in three months after the construction and engineering group reported net profit soared 93% in the second quarter ended Jan 31.The results, released after trading hours on Wednesday, came in well within the market’s expectation.Gamuda’s share price rose 24 sen, or 7.6%, to close at RM3.38 with 9.3 million shares transacted.Despite the big jump yesterday, the stock was 30% down for the year on a sharp re-rating on construction players in recent weeks.Gamuda made a net profit of RM90.1mil, or 4.5 sen per share, compared with RM46.6mil, or 2.93 sen per share, posted in the previous corresponding period.Latest analysts’ updates on the company showed that Gamuda earnings forecast is intact, with consensus estimate for the year ending July 31 (FY08) at 18 sen per share and rising to 28 sen per share in FY09. Read more

(The Star 29-3-2008)

Glomac 9 month net profit up 94 pc

GLOMAC Bhd's nine-month net profit jumped 94 per cent to RM31.6 million on the back of RM252.3 million revenue, driven by strong progress billings of ongoing development projects.The group said it has launched close to RM1 billion worth of new projects this year, and will have more than twelve projects ongoing concurrently.

(New Straits Times 29-3-2008)

Gamuda starts working on succession plan

KUALA LUMPUR: Gamuda Bhd managing director Datuk Lin Yun Ling said the group has started working on a succession plan while he would continue to helm the company he founded.
Describing Gamuda’s prospects as “good”, Lin is confident the group would be able to meet all “the guidance that it had given to analysts earlier”. He denied market talk that his share sale was due to any adverse changes on the group’s fundamentals or earnings prospects. “I brought up the company over the past 25 years. I certainly don’t intend to have an abrupt exit ... we will ensure that over the next five years or longer, there will be a smooth transition,” Lin told StarBiz yesterday. He said he could foresee the day Gamuda would be run by professional managers who were not shareholders. “There are two or three names who have the potential (to take over the top executive positions),” he added. Lin trimmed his stake to 1.7% from 5.2% last week. The shares were placed out to global institutional investors. Read more

(The Star 28-2-2008)

Gamuda mulls share buyback as market value plummets

GAMUDA Bhd, the country's second biggest builder, may buy its own shares after the company lost nearly RM2.6 billion in market value over the past six trading days."We are weighing our options," a Gamuda official said in a telephone conversation recently.Gamuda has not started buying back its shares, it said in an e-mail reply to Business Times.Last year, Gamuda's shareholders approved a share buyback plan. It could buy up to a tenth of its shares or spend not more than its retained profits.As at August 2006, Gamuda had retained profits of RM1.15 billion.Gamuda closed 20 sen higher at RM3.80 yesterday after DBS Vickers changed its recommendation on the stock to "buy" from "hold".But DBS Vickers slashed its share price target from RM5 to RM4.50.However, the single largest shareholder continued to buy more shares.FMR LLC & Fidelity International Ltd yesterday said it bought 40,300 Gamuda shares last week, bringing its shareholding to 11.87 per cent.The builder has been under siege since last week, after its group managing director for the past 26 years, revealed last week that he is no longer a substantial shareholder.Datuk Lin Yun Ling sold 70 million.

(New Straits Times 27-2-2008)

Gamuda’s Lin staying on

PETALING JAYA: Gamuda Bhd managing director Datuk Lin Yun Ling has given foreign fund managers an assurance that he will stay on to lead the construction group he founded for at least five more years. StarBiz understands that Lin spoke to foreign institutional investors via teleconference on Monday and told them that his move in selling his stake was not a signal that he was exiting Gamuda. He also told them that the fact that he was still heading Gamuda after trimming his equity interest in the company in April 2002 demonstrated his intention to remain in his post. Read more>

(The Star 27-2-2008)

Gamuda share sale by MD sends out wrong signals, says CLSA

KUALA LUMPUR: CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets said the placing out of shares by Gamuda Bhd founder and managing director Datuk Lin Yun Ling of two-thirds of his stake at a time when prospects for the company had never been better sends the wrong signal to the market. “This raises concerns as to whether he knows something that the market does not know as yet,” it said, adding that Lin was on leave and not available for comment. In a report following Lin placing out 70 million shares or a 3.5% stake in the company last Wednesday, CLSA said the corporate deal raised a few concerns. The official reason given for the disposal was estate planning, and that Lin has agreed to a lock-up period of 18 months for his remaining 1.6% stake, said CLSA. Read more>

(The Edge 25-2-2008)

Gamuda Land wows visitors with Jade Hills

GAMUDA Land held a “sneak preview” of its latest high-end residential development, Jade Hills in Kajang, during the recent Chinese New Year festive period. It was a pleasant surprise for those who attended the “Spring Festival” event on Feb 16. The renowned property developer had quietly but efficiently built four splendid show bungalows, an Oriental-style clubhouse, and big entrance statement with the usual water features. It also put up a large air-conditioned tent to welcome prospective buyers and other visitors. Read more>

(The Star 25-2-2008)

Gamuda MD cuts stake, stock tumbles

Datuk Lin Yun Ling will still be committed to his role as a managing director and no management reshuffling is likely to happen, says a company official SHARES of Gamuda Bhd, Malaysia's second biggest builder, suffered their biggest drop in 10 years yesterday, after managing director Datuk Lin Yun Ling reduced his stake in the company to 1.73 per cent from 5.23 per cent.Lin sold 70 million Gamuda shares through Credit Suisse (Hong Kong) Ltd on Wednesday, reducing his stake to 34.7 million shares from 104.7 million in a deal believed to be valued at around RM350 million.While the news came as a surprise to the industry, Lin reiterated that he will be retaining the remaining shares and his management position, which he has held since 1981."I am undertaking this partial disposal for estate planning purposes as I last sold shares in April 2002," Lin said in a statement, without elaborating on his future plans. Read more

(New Straits Times 22-2-2008)

Official Nod For Gamuda To Develop Viet Project

Gamuda Bhd has received an investment certificate that officially allows it to develop Vietnam’s Yen So Park project, worth almost RM1 billion. Gamuda will design and build a RM1.5 billion sewerage treatment plant, which will be the biggest in Vietnam.

(3-1-2008, New Straits Times)