22 minutes
PETALING JAYA: Fraser & Neave Holdings Bhd’s (F&N) net profit grew 4.5% to RM128.37 million for its first quarter ended Dec 31, 2019 compared to RM122.86 million reported in the corresponding quarter of the previous year, attributed to higher sales.
Revenue for the quarter stood at RM1.11 billion, a 10% increase from RM1.01 billion reported previously.
According to the group’s Bursa filing, its operation in Malaysia saw a 7.2% decline in profit from RM52.5 million to RM48.7 million on the back of higher input cost, warehouse and freight charges as well as earlier marketing activation and higher marketing expenses.
However, F&N Thailand’s operating profit rose 11.7% from RM99.3 million to RM110.9 million, mainly due to a higher domestic sales and favourable input costs as a result of a stronger Thai baht.
Moving forward, F&N expects Malaysia’s general consumer sentiment to remain weak, but the beverages segment is projected to perform better due to the success of its new product offerings last year.
Nonetheless, it foresees continuous competitive pressures in the dairies segment.
“We will be introducing more new product offerings to increase our presence in healthier categories and to further underline our leadership in our core categories. We will also sharpen our commercial execution in preparation for 2020 Hari Raya festive sales.”
Although some headwinds are expected for the Thai economy, F&N believes investments in brand and new product launches will help to drive its organic growth in Thailand, Cambodia and Laos.
Meanwhile, the group expects raw and packaging material prices to remain volatile.
“Our policy to hedge a portion of our requirements ahead for the financial year will mitigate the impact while we also actively and constantly implement cost savings projects.”
