PETALING JAYA: Eco World Development Group Bhd posted a net profit of RM81.5 million for its fourth quarter ended Oct 31, which was 6.3 times higher than the net profit of RM12.8 million recorded in the previous corresponding quarter.
Revenue for the quarter came in at RM906.5 million, 96.5% higher from RM461.4 million last year.
In a statement, the group attributed the positive performance to higher percentage of completion and higher sales secured by ongoing projects of the group’s subsidiaries such as Eco Majestic, Eco Forest, Eco Sanctuary and Eco Sky in the Klang Valley, Eco Botanic, Eco Spring, Eco Summer, Eco Business Park I, Eco Business Park II, Eco Tropics and Eco Business Park III in Iskandar Malaysia and Eco Meadows in Penang.
The group’s share of the results of its Malaysian joint-ventures increased by 355% in 4Q19 compared to 4Q18.
The increase is the result of stronger sales as well as greater progress of works achieved by Eco Grandeur, Eco Business Park V, Eco Horizon, Eco Ardence and Bukit Bintang City Centre (BBCC).
EcoWorld Malaysia president and CEO Datuk Chang Khim Wah said the extremely strong results for this financial year demonstrated the depth and resilience of the group’s business.
“Team Eco World’s agility in adapting to changes in the marketplace to overcome the many challenges of the past two years has enabled us to substantially strengthen our balance sheet. This is evidenced in the growth of our net assets per share to RM1.54 and reduction in net gearing to 0.70 times.
““Our early investment in the digital space has also exponentially increased our market reach and yielded much greater intelligence on customer requirements and aspirations. This enabled us to plan more effective campaigns that truly resonate with our target customer base as well as new products and services which they really need and want,” he said.
Meanwhile, Eco World International saw a substantial increase in profit to RM118.8 million for 4Q19, compared with RM12.8 million reported for 4Q 2018 due to higher recognition of revenue and profit by its joint venture projects in the United Kingdom.
EcoWorld International’s effective stake in the future revenue of its subsidiaries and joint ventures as at Oct 31, 2019 also remains high at RM5 billion.
“The strong performance achieved in FY2019 will help sustain earnings growth momentum and
contribute towards both companies’ aim to be in a position to declare their first dividend in FY2020,” the group said in its statement.
