KUALA LUMPUR (May 11): Here is a brief recap of some corporate announcements that made the news on Thursday (May 11) involving Genting Malaysia Bhd, Mr DIY Group (M) Bhd, Heineken Malaysia Bhd, Pentamaster Corp Bhd, Bahvest Resources Bhd, Ageson Bhd, UPA Corp Bhd, Bina Darulaman Bhd and Bertam Alliance Bhd.  

Genting Malaysia Bhd (GenM) will dispose of its unit Resorts World Miami LLC (RW Miami) for US$1.225 billion (RM5.433 billion) instead of four parcels of land owned by the subsidiary in Miami. The casino operator revised its divestment plan because purchaser Smart Miami City LLC on May 10 opted to exercise its right to convert the transaction to a 100% purchase of the ownership interests in RW Miami, instead of the land, within 10 business days after the effective date. On April 27, GenM said it wanted to sell four tracts of land, measuring 15.47 acres and held by RW Miami, for US$1.225 billion to Smart Miami. The deal would have enabled GenM to realise an estimated gain of US$967 million. The cash proceeds generated from the proposed disposal are intended to be utilised for general corporate and investment purposes, including funding future investments as and when they arise.

Home improvement retailer Mr DIY Group (M) Bhd’s net profit rose 27.13% to RM127.77 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2023 (1QFY2023) from RM100.5 million a year earlier (1QFY2022), thanks to higher revenue and lower freight costs, which boosted its gross profit. Quarterly revenue climbed 15.6% to RM1.05 billion from RM905.16 million, driven by growth in same-store sales as well as contribution from new stores. The number of stores grew 18.8% year-on-year to 1,125, which led to a corresponding increase in total transactions, which grew 18.1% to 32.8 million in 1QFY2023. A first interim dividend of 0.6 sen per share or about RM56.6 million — to be paid on June 23 — equivalent to 44.3% of its net earnings, was announced.

Heineken Malaysia Bhd's net profit dipped 3.04% to RM109.93 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2023 (1QFY2023) compared with RM113.38 million posted a year ago, due to higher expenses incurred for promotional and marketing activities. The brewer's revenue for 1QFY2023 grew 6% to RM740.22 million from RM698.33 million in 1QFY2022, driven by better sales mix as the group’s premium portfolio grew, as well as cost-driven price increases. It also attributed its revenue growth to its promotional and marketing spend.

Pentamaster Corp Bhd's net profit rose 4.3% to RM21.27 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2023 (1QFY2023) from RM20.4 million a year ago, underpinned by the stronger factory automation solutions (FAS) segment. The FAS segment enjoyed better profit in 1QFY2023 due to an increase in revenue, favorable changes in the product mix with better profit margins, and economies of scale achieved for the projects undertaken. Quarterly revenue climbed 13.2% to RM165.31 million from RM146.02 million, driven by an increased top line from FAS, which contributed 32.7% of total revenue. The remaining 67.3% came from the automated test equipment segment. The group did not declare any dividend for the quarter under review.

Bahvest Resources Bhd CEO Datuk Lo Fui Ming has ceased to become a substantial shareholder of the company after offloading some 9.3% or 115.19 million shares in the open market. Lo disposed of the shares on Tuesday (May 9), when the stock plunged 29% to 13.5 sen, before falling by a further 15% a day after. After the latest disposal, Lo’s ownership dropped to 3.89% from 13.18% last week. Lo has been cutting down his shareholding since the company received an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) requisition from a group of shareholders to remove him — and his son Lo Teck Yong and non-executive chairman Datuk Seri Dr Md Kamal Bilal — from the board. The group of five shareholders, consisting of Datuk Freddy Lim, Yong Fen Yoo, Chong Tzu Khen, Marlex Trading Ltd and Innosabah Capital Holdings Sdn Bhd, collectively owns more than 10% of Bahvest, and has requested for an EGM on May 25.

Over a year and a half after penning a deal to dispose of a 168-acre piece of industrial land in Perak to China’s Zhejiang Guorong Digital Economy Group Ltd (ZGDEG), Ageson Bhd says the RM278.78 million land sale has been terminated. The agreement inked between Ageson’s 75%-owned unit Ageson Holdings Sdn Bhd (AHSB) and ZGDEG, which proposed AHSB to build 33 industrial lots with a gross development value of RM278.78 million, was mutually terminated by the pair. The 168-acre land is part of a larger 475-acre parcel owned by Menteri Besar Inc (MBI) Perak. The state-owned company granted AHSB exclusive development rights to carry out a mixed development project comprising government agencies and administration units, industrial, commercial and residential at its sole discretion — subject to the state government’s approval.

Paper and printing machine seller UPA Corp Bhd has proposed to undertake a bonus issue of up to 159.16 million shares on the basis of two bonus shares for every one existing share held, on an entitlement date to be determined later.

Bina Darulaman Bhd’s (BDB) unit has secured a state road maintenance contract worth RM204 million from the Kedah state government. Its unit BDB Infra Sdn Bhd (BDB Infra) will undertake the project that will run for a period of 36 months from May 2023 to May 2026. The maintenance work will cover zone one, which includes the districts of Kota Setar, Padang Terap/Pokok Sena, Kubang Pasu, Pendang, Yan and Sik. Previously, in 2020, BDB Infra was also awarded a three-year contract by the Kedah state government for the purpose of road maintenance in several districts in the state.

Bertam Alliance Bhd said its external auditor has expressed its unqualified opinion with material uncertainty related to the group's ability to continue as a going concern, with regards to its audited financial statements for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2022 (FY2022). Messrs PKF highlighted that Bertam Alliance incurred negative operating cash flows of RM1.47 million during FY2022 and its current liabilities has exceeded its current assets by RM17.09 million. The company said it is taking measures to mitigate the material uncertainty on going concern within the next 12 months. It added that Mercury Securities Sdn Bhd, on behalf of the Bertam Alliance board, had submitted an application in regards to its regularisation plan on March 30 last year and submitted a revised application on Feb 21 this year. The application is pending approval from Bursa Securities. It was classified as a Practice Note 17 (PN17) company on April 4, 2018 after Bursa rejected its application for a waiver after taking into consideration the winding-up order against its unit Bertam Development Sdn Bhd, which accounts for at least half of the company's total assets.