Sime Darby Property net profit increases fourfold in 2Q

PETALING JAYA: Sime Darby Property Bhd recorded a stronger set of earnings in the second quarter of this year (2Q22) and first half of its financial year ended June 30 (1H22) on the back of robust sales figures.

It said net profit spiked by more than fourfold to Rm104.99mil in 2Q22 from Rm23.20mil a year ago as the group was confident of sales surpassing last year’s total of Rm2.6bil.

Earnings per share was 1.5 sen for the quarter and 2.3 sen for the six-month period. For 1H22, Sime Darby Property’s net profit jumped 75.2% to Rm156.55mil from Rm89.31mil a year ago, while its revenue was flat at Rm1.09bil in the first six months of its financial year.

Group managing director Datuk Azmir Merican said the group’s strong performance in 1H22 was driven by its steady product launches throughout the pandemic period which registered commendable take-up rates.

“The group will continue to exercise rigorous financial discipline across our operations, working closely with our reliable pool of vendors to manage the current challenges in the operating environment.

“We were resilient in addressing these operational issues, leading to our strong momentum in the first half of the year and we aim to sustain this positive trajectory for the remainder of the year,” he said.

Azmir noted that the group was on track to exceeding its FY22 sales target after achieving Rm1.9bil or about 73% of its full-year target.

Unbilled sales increased to Rm3.4bil, compared with Rm1.8bil in the same period last year, ensuring earnings visibility for the next two years.

Given the positive performance in its financial results, the group declared an interim dividend of one sen per share amounting to Rm68mil. According to Azmir, the group’s financial strength is substantiated by cash and cash equivalents of Rm820mil and net gearing of 30.3% as at the first half of the year.

He is confident that group could surpass its Rm2.6bil full-year sales target with new launches worth Rm2.8bil in gross development value.

“For the remainder of the year we are looking forward to many exciting new developments including the launch of the Battersea Power Station in the United Kingdom in

October, and ongoing progress of our Industrial Development Fund through the joint venture with Logos Property, a new source of recurring income for the group in line with its long-term strategy,” added Azmir.

For 2Q22, revenue rose 22.6% to Rm615.61mil in the quarter from Rm501.96mil a year ago driven by strong development site progress at its major townships from June onwards as well as sales of products with higher margins.

“The group remains committed to achieve its product launch target in financial year ending Dec 31, 2022 of Rm2.8bil in gross development value of which Rm1.5bil worth of products were launched in 1H22, garnering a 94% average take-up rate for residential properties excluding statutory products as at Aug 7, 2022,” said the group.