Bauto expects positive showing in FY24

PETALING JAYA: Bermaz Auto Bhd (Bauto) anticipates a positive performance for the financial year ending April 30, 2024 (FY24) amidst the uncertainty in the outlook of the automotive sector.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, the auto maker said the automotive sector is expected to continue to register growth albeit at a slower pace due to factors such as inflationary pressures, uncertainties in geopolitical conflicts and weaker global growth, which will have an adverse impact on the overall local economy.

For the third quarter ended Jan 31, 2024, Bauto’s net profit dropped by 19% year-onyear (y-o-y) to Rm70.5mil, translating to an earnings per share of 6.04 sen.

This was in line with the decrease in the group’s revenue and a lower profit contribution from its associated company, Mazda Malaysia Sdn Bhd, because of lower production volume.

Bauto’s revenue declined by 8% y-o-y to Rm896.5mil mainly due to a lower sales volume and a change in the sales mix from the domestic operations of its Mazda marque.

For the nine-month period ended Jan 31, 2024 (9M24), Bauto’s net profit surged by 28% y-o-y to Rm260.8mil underpinned by higher sales volume from the domestic operations of its Mazda marque.

Revenue in 9M24 expanded by 21% y-o-y to Rm2.99bil, mainly attributable to higher sales volume from the domestic operations of the group’s Mazda marque, especially the Mazda CX-30 CKD model, which continued to register high sales volume since its launch in March 2023.

The company said the launching of new and/or new facelift models of existing and new vehicle marques are still very much dependent on the market sentiment and economic conditions then.

Bauto declared a third single-tier interim dividend of 4.25 sen per share in respect of FY24.

The entitlement date has been fixed on April 18, 2024 and is payable on May 3, 2024. This will bring the total dividend declared for the financial period ended Jan 31, 2024 to 14.25 sen per share.

Bauto shares closed unchanged at RM2.48, giving the group a market capitalisation of Rm2.9bil.

Year-to-date, the counter has appreciated by 6.4%.

Bauto’s associated companies are principally involved in the production and/or assembly of Mazda and Kia marques complately knocked down vehicles in Malaysia using local parts, as well as imported parts supplied by Mazda and Kia principal manufacturers.