Genting returns to the black in 3Q

Genting Bhd returned to black in the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2022 (3Q22) due to the stronger leisure and hospitality division in Malaysia and Singapore.

In 3Q22, the investment holding and management company saw a rise of 74.8% yearon-year (y-o-y) to Rm6.1bil in its revenue.

Net profit recovered from a loss making quarter in 3Q21 to Rm128mil on the back of a higher adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda).

Lower pre-opening expenses led by Resorts World Las Vegas and lower impairment charges were also among the reasons that boosted margins. Basic earnings per share went up to 3.32 sen from a loss per share of 8.95 sen in the previous year.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia yesterday, it said Resorts World Sentosa continued its recovery in the quarter with revenue and ebitda more than doubled over the previous year’s corresponding quarter.

The same performance could be seen in the group’s Resorts World Genting with higher business volume supported by the reopening of national borders.

The increase in non-gaming revenue in 3Q22 is also underpinned by the opening of Genting Skyworlds in February.

Revenue and ebitda were also up in the group’s plantation segment as a result of better palm products ouput. Earnings from downstream manufacturing saw marginal increments due to higher selling prices for refined palm products and lower sales volume.

The group reported lower earnings in the leisure and hospitality businesses in the UK and Egypt in the current quarter given the weaker sterling pound and higher payroll as well as related costs.

Meanwhile, its subsidiary, Genting Malaysia Bhd, registered a jump in revenue to Rm2.3bil in 3Q22 mainly due to a strong recovery in overall business volume registered at Resorts World Genting. This was supported by the improved contributions from the non-gaming segment that comes with the launch of Genting Skyworlds theme park.

Net profits recovered in 3Q21 to Rm11.4mil due to the improvement in the group’s operations. However, Genting Malaysia reported a decline in revenue growth to 3% at Rm393.3mil in the UK and Egypt operations due to the impact of foreign exchange translation losses.

Despite global economic conditions that remain challenging, the group said it maintained an optimistic outlook with the leisure and hospitality industry expected to stay positive in the longer-term.