PROPERTY and construction-based Ageson Bhd posted a 47% jump in its net profit for 1H FY6/2022 ended Dec 31, 2021 to RM25.64 mil (1H FY6/2021: RM17.45 mil) due to higher billing recognised from the trading of construction materials and disposal gain on the subsidiary.
At the same time, the group’s revenue also more than doubled to RM133.23 mil during the period under review (1H FY6/2021: RMRM66.19 mil) in view of higher billing recognised from the trading of construction materials.
“During the 1H FY6/2022, the group has taken proactive measures to shift into trading of building materials to offset the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our construction business,” commented Ageson’s executive director Datuk Seri Chin Kok Foong.
“This is important as the construction division remains the sole contributor to the group’s revenue as the property development division is still struggling from the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and the emerging Omicron variant.”
Moreover, Ageson’s commendable results were also driven by the group’s agile management and workforce who responded well to the evolving market dynamics and uncertainties due to the pandemic, according to Chin.
On a quarterly basis, however, Ageson’s 2Q FY6/2022 net profit edged down 46.8% to RM6.58 mil (2Q FY6/2021: RM12.38 mil) although its revenue almost doubled to RM80.83 mil (2Q FY6/2021: RM44.68 mil).
Moving forward, Ageson is optimistic on the outlook for 2022 as the economic recovery in Malaysia continues on the back of various stimulus packages introduced by the Government.
“We are starting to see the resumption of construction works, infrastructure projects and property development. This recovery momentum bodes well with Ageson’s business strategy and put us in a good position to tap on the rising construction activities in Malaysia,” Chin pointed out.
As such, he expects the trading of construction materials to continue to sustain Ageson’s earnings while the resumption of construction works and award of property development projects will drive the group’s growth.
As for property development, the group will shift towards public-private partnership projects in Malaysia while tapping into overseas projects by exploring business partnerships with foreign multinational enterprises.
This strategy allows Ageson to initiate an asset-light strategy to collaborate with potential government bodies to secure more landbank for the further expansion of the group.
Aside from that, the group will also partner with Shuangling Holdings Ltd, an established property developer in China, to undertake a proposed mixed property development project in Selangor.
The project which boasts a gross development value (GDV) of RM95.2 mil will take about two years to complete from its commencement date.
Elsewhere, Ageson also plans to strengthen its balance sheet by improving its gearing level to zero via fund-raising exercise. This will improve the group’s cash flow position and put Ageson in a strong position to take on upcoming large-scale public-private partnership projects.
At the close of yesterday’s (Feb 18) trading, Ageson was up 0.5 sen or 20% to 3 sen with 1.28 million shares traded, thus valuing the company at RM47 mil. – Feb 19, 2022
