KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 29): DRB-Hicom Bhd posted a net profit of RM26.47 million for the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2023 (4QFY2023), compared with a net loss of RM100.06 million a year earlier, helped by higher financing income from its banking sector.

The net profit was, however, lower than the RM70.8 million reported for the immediate preceding quarter.  

In a bourse filing on Thursday, the group said revenue for 4QFY2023 declined 13.3% year-on-year to RM3.77 billion from RM4.35 billion.

The banking sector's revenue rose 31.8% to RM456.11 million on the back of a higher financing income fuelled by increased financing volume, which was attributed to sustainable expansion, a growing customer base and an increase in the overnight policy rate to 3%.

However, DRB-Hicom said its automotive sector recorded a revenue decline of 16.3% to RM2.58 billion during the quarter following a drop in sales volume.

The aerospace and defence sector also saw a decline of 35.1% in revenue to RM217.39 million due to lower delivery of defence products, while the property sector's revenue declined 72.5% to RM33.87 million on lower revenue recognised from property construction and development projects.

DRB-Hicom said it aims to further expand overall product offerings through technology-driven upgrading for its automotive segment, in tandem with the improvement in the total industry volume in Malaysia with nearly 800,000 new vehicles registered in 2023.

It noted that Proton had achieved a new record high in vehicle sales since 2011 with over 150,000 units sold in 2023, while Honda also achieved a sales target of over 80,000 units.

As for the non-automotive sectors, DRB-Hicom said the group will continue to strengthen operational efficiencies and maintain prudent management.

“The group expects positive performance for FY2024,” it added,

For FY2023 as a whole, DRB-Hicom's net profit rose 27.3% to RM238.88 million from RM187.71 million in FY2022, while revenue increased 2.2% to RM15.85 billion from RM15.51 billion.

DRB-Hicom shares closed two sen or 1.46% higher at RM1.39 on Thursday, valuing the group at RM2.69 billion.