Sime Darby property debuts at 20 sen discount

KUALA LUMPUR: Sime Darby Property Bhd debuted on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia yesterday at RM1.30, a discount of 20 sen from its listing reference price of RM1.50 with 370,800 units traded.

Sime Darby Plantation Bhd opened at a premium of one sen at RM5.60 from its listing reference price of RM5.59 with 243,700 units transacted.

Meanwhile, Sime Darby Bhd resumed trading at a higher price of RM2.40, soaring 55 sen with 834,800 units transacted after trading in the shares were suspended since Nov 27, 2017, with its last traded price of RM1.85.

Sime Darby saw positive performance on Bursa Malaysia today following the demerger of Sime Darby Plantation and Sime Darby Property as separate entities from the holding company.

Its group chief executive officer, Jeffri Salim Davidson, said the listings of Sime Darby Plantation and Sime Darby Property as separate entities from Sime Darby were to unlock sustainable value for the group and investors.

Speaking to reporters after the listing ceremony of the two companies here, he said Sime Darby would now focus on the group’s trading and logistics businesses. — Bernama

“Our total revenue is pretty much driven by our motor segment, with about RM20 billion contribution to our total revenue in the previous financial year, followed by the industrial segment with a contribution of about RM10 billion.

“We started today with a “new” Sime Darby with a pretty low gearing, around 19 to 20 per cent. We see that is at a comfortable level at the moment, so we are just looking to maintain our gearing level at the current level,” he said.

Meanwhile, Sime Darby Property Chairman, Tan Sri Abdul Wahid Omar said the company is now in a solid financial position to execute its upcoming projects, with an initial shareholders’ fund of RM9.65 billion and a gearing level of 12 per cent.

Sime Darby Plantation Executive Deputy Chairman/Managing Director, Tan Sri Mohd Bakke Salleh, on the other hand, said that the company was planning to reduce its gearing level by about 1.0-2.0 per cent moving into end of the financial year ending June 30, 2018 from about 60 per cent currently. — Bernama