PETALING JAYA: Hartalega Holdings Bhd kicked off its financial year on a strong note, delivering a record net profit of RM2.26 billion for its first quarter ended June 30, 2021, a tenfold jump from RM219.71 million a year ago, mainly due to higher sales revenue and lower utility expenses.
Its revenue grew four times to RM3.90 billion compared with RM920.09 million in the previous year’s corresponding quarter mainly due to the increase in average selling prices as well as higher sales volume.
Earnings per share for the first quarter grew to 66.08 sen while net assets per share stood at RM1.91 as at June 30, 2021.
CEO Kuan Mun Leong said moving forward, while average selling prices for nitrile gloves have been declining from their peak, global demand is expected to remain heightened, particularly due to fresh waves of Covid-19 cases with new variants affecting countries worldwide. In the longer term, the structural step-up in demand in the glove sector will spur further growth, driven by increased glove usage from emerging markets with low glove consumption per capita and increased hygiene awareness.
“To cater to this demand growth, the group will continue to progress with our expansion plans via our Next Generation Integrated Glove Manufacturing Complex (NGC) and NGC 1.5. To date, eight out of 10 lines of Plant 7 of the NGC have been commissioned. Once completed, Plant 7 will have an annual installed capacity of 2.7 billion pieces.
“In addition, construction for our upcoming expansion, NGC 1.5, is under way, with the first production line targeted to be commissioned by December 2021. Once NGC 1.5 is completed, it will comprise four manufacturing facilities contributing 19 billion pieces of gloves to our annual installed capacity. With these expansion plans in place, the group’s annual installed capacity is expected to increase to 63 billion pieces over the next two to three years,” said Kuan.
Hartalega has commenced an immunisation programme for its employees who have not yet received vaccination appointments, to be inoculated through the Public-Private Partnership Covid-19 Industry Immunisation Programme. To date, over 90% of its staff, including migrant workers, have completed the first dose of vaccination, with the second dose of vaccination for Hartanians targeted to be completed by the end of next month.
“Building on our strong foundation and progressing in our strategic plans, the group is well positioned to continue delivering high-quality nitrile gloves to protect frontliners across the world, and cater for future demand in the years ahead,” said Kuan.
