Hartalega Q4 profit rises to RM89.4m on higher demand

KUALA LUMPUR: Hartalega Holdings Bhd’s net profit increased 45.3 per cent to RM89.43 million from RM61.55 million in the fourth-quarter ended March 31.

In a filing to Bursa Malaysia yesterday, the rubber glove manufacturer said the positive results was due to increased sales revenue, improvements in operational efficiency and reduction in operation overheads.

Revenue in the same quarter increased 31.6 per cent to RM526.99 million from RM400.45 million, in line with the group’s continuous expansion in production capacity and an increase in demand.

The company said the increase in sales volume and the strengthening of the dollar also contributed to the increase in company revenue.

For the last 12 months, Hartalega’s net profit increased 9.9 per cent to RM283.04 million from RM257.43 million, while revenue in the same period increased 21.6 per cent to RM1.82 billion from RM1.49 billion.

Hartalega said demand for rubber gloves started the year on a high note due to the continued switching momentum and increasing healthcare requirements.

“Hartalega has positioned itself strategically to leverage on this growing demand with its investment in its Next Generation Integrated Glove Manufacturing Complex (NGC),” it said in a statement.

Hartalega said Phase 1 of the NGC, completed early last year, contributed positively to group earnings.

The progressive commissioning of Phase 2 in October is expected to contribute further to group earnings.

Amid the volatility of raw material prices in the early part of the year and a more competitive environment, Hartalega continued to forge forward by committing to quality to meet customer requirements, maintaining high utilisation rates and organisation-wide efforts to improve efficiency, it added.

“Hartalega is doubling down on its efforts to maintain its growth momentum,” it said.