KL Kepong Q2 net profit jumps 72%

PETALING JAYA: Oil palm plantation company Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd (KL Kepong) saw its net profit in the second quarter (Q2) ended March 31, 2017 jump 71.8% to RM289.6 million, from RM168.5 million in the previous corresponding quarter, on the back of higher revenue.
Revenue increased 47.8% to RM5.47 billion, compared with RM3.7 billion in the same period last year.
In a filing with Bursa Malaysia yesterday, the group said plantations profit improved substantially to RM358.9 million, from RM125.6 million in Q2’16, underpinned by strong crude palm oil (CPO) and palm kernel (PK) selling prices and the increase in fresh fruit bunches production.
For the six months period, its net profit declined 32.5% to RM650.2 million, from RM963.7 million a year ago. KL Kepong noted that last year’s result had accounted for a surplus of RM485.6 million arising from the sale of plantation land to an associate.
Revenue grew 36.4% to RM11 billion, from RM8.04 billion previously. The group said its plantations profit had almost doubled to RM778.3 million, from RM398.5 million a year ago, despite lower contribution from the processing and trading operations.
On prospects, the group said the current price of CPO has eased off from its recent highs, and the expectation of rise in production may further affect the CPO price, as evidenced in the discounted prices for forward months.
KL Kepong said it expects its profit for the financial year 2017 to be satisfactory.