SG Equities Digest (Tuesday, 13 August 2024)
Find updates of the following companies in the news in today's post: 17LIVE Group Ltd, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust, CapitaLand Investment Limited, DBS Group Holdings Ltd, Delfi Ltd, ESR-LOGOS REIT, Golden Agri-Resources Ltd, Halcyon Agri Corporation Ltd, Hong Leong Asia Ltd, Hotel Properties Ltd, Nam Cheong Ltd, Nanofilm Technologies International Ltd, Prime US REIT, PropNex Ltd, Suntec REIT, UOL Group Ltd, Wilmar International Ltd, and Yangzijiang Financial Holding Ltd:
17LIVE Group Ltd (SGX: LVR)
13 Aug 2024: 17LIVE, the first and only company on the Singapore Exchange to undergo a despac transaction, reported a profit of US$1.9 million for 1H FY2024, reversing a previous loss of US$118.2 million. Despite a 49% year-on-year drop in operating revenue to US$101.1 million due to decreased live streaming income and unfavourable currency movements, the company improved its profit margin to 41.2% and appointed Jiang Honghui as its new CEO, with founder Joseph Phua moving to the role of non-executive chairman.
CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust (SGX: C38U)
13 Aug 2024: CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust (CICT) saw a 2.5% year-on-year increase in its distributions per unit (DPU) to 5.43 Singapore cents per unit for 1H FY2024, though this was slightly below the DPU of 5.45 Singapore cents per unit declared in 2H 2023. The trust achieved positive growth in distributable income and gross revenue, by 3.8% to S$375.3 million and 2.2% to S$792.0 million respectively, with a portfolio-wide committed occupancy of 96.8% and strong leasing momentum across its retail and office portfolios in Singapore.
CapitaLand Investment Limited (SGX: 9CI)
CapitaLand Investment Limited (CLI) has announced the first close of its sixth onshore renminbi fund, China Business Park RMB Fund III, with an initial equity commitment of RMB1.2 billion (S$222 million) to invest in China's business park sector. CLI will recapitalise Ascendas iHub Suzhou, divesting it as a seed asset to the fund for RMB1.4 billion (S$259 million), while continuing to manage the property, which will contribute to its recurring fee income.
DBS Group Holdings Ltd (SGX: D05)
13 Aug 2024: DBS has introduced DBS Treasury Tokens, a blockchain-based solution in collaboration with Ant International, enabling instant multi-currency treasury and liquidity management across multiple markets. Integrated with Ant International’s Whale platform, this partnership aims to enhance cross-border payment efficiency, reduce costs, and address the evolving needs of businesses in a 24/7 e-commerce environment.
Delfi Ltd (SGX: P34)
13 Aug 2024: Delfi Ltd, a chocolate and confectionery manufacturer, reported a 22.3% decline in net profit to US$19.6 million for the 1st half of FY2024, primarily due to weakened regional currencies and reduced sales following a strategic reduction in promotional spending. Revenue fell by 7.8% to US$260.8 million, with significant drops in both own-brand and agency-brand sales, while the company announced an interim dividend of 2.06 US cents per share, same as last year, to be paid on 12 September.
ESR-LOGOS REIT (SGX: J91U)
13 Aug 2024: ESR-LOGOS REIT has priced S$100 million in perpetual capital securities at 6%, in addition to S$74.8 million issued earlier this month, as part of a S$750 million debt issuance programme. The funds will help finance acquisitions in Japan and Singapore, and despite increasing pro-forma leverage to 41%, they are expected to raise the FY2023 pro-forma distribution per unit by 3%.
Golden Agri-Resources Ltd (SGX: E5H)
13 Aug 2024: Golden Agri-Resources reported a 27.8% decline in net profit to US$65 million for the 2nd quarter ended 30th June, primarily due to higher financial expenses and an unrealised foreign-exchange loss, despite a 10.4% increase in revenue to US$2.6 billion. For the 1st half of the year, net profit fell to US$102 million from US$182 million, while revenue rose by 5% to US$5.1 billion, driven by increased sales in its downstream segment.
Halcyon Agri Corporation Ltd (SGX: 5VJ)
13 Aug 2024: Halcyon Agri reported a reduced loss of US$21.8 million for the 1st half of 2024, compared to a loss of US$62.1 million in the same period last year, driven by a 25.7% increase in revenue to US$1.5 billion due to expanded sales and better pricing. The company highlighted improvements in gross profit and sales volume, particularly in China through integration with Hainan Rubber Group, while also noting challenges ahead due to interest rates, geopolitical tensions, and China's economic trends. Trading of the company’s shares has been suspended since 25 April 2023, as its free float fell to less than 10% following Hainan Rubber group’s mandatory conditional offer of S$0.413 per share of the company omitted 24 April 2023.
Hong Leong Asia Ltd (SGX: H22)
13 Aug 2024: Hong Leong Asia reported a 60.1% increase in net profit from continuing operations to S$49.4 million for the 1st half of 2024, driven by higher revenue from its powertrain solutions unit, Yuchai, and its building materials unit. The group also declared an interim dividend of S$0.01 per share, while cautioning about rising costs due to the removal of diesel subsidies and highlighting its ongoing sustainability efforts.
Hotel Properties Ltd (SGX: H15)
13 Aug 2024: Hotel Properties (HPL), owned by tycoon Ong Beng Seng, reported a narrowed net loss of S$4.9 million for the 1st half of 2024, down from S$17.2 million the previous year, as revenue increased by 8.9% to S$347.3 million, boosted by better performance across most of its hotels and the opening of Six Senses Kanuhura Maldives. Despite higher finance costs, the group also benefited from a S$5.5 million mark-to-market fair-value gain on long-term investments, and recently opened its first Japan hotel, Four Seasons Osaka, marking its 15th Four Seasons property globally.
Nam Cheong Ltd (SGX: 1MZ)
13 Aug 2024: Nam Cheong, an offshore service vessel provider, reported a significant surge in net profit to RM635.8 million for 1H FY2024, up from RM31.7 million in the previous year, primarily due to debt waivers. The company also saw a 12% increase in revenue to RM312 million and an 87% rise in gross profit to RM146 million, driven by higher daily charter rates and greater utilisation of larger vessels, with future growth expected from increased offshore operations and rising charter rates amid Petronas's expanded upstream activities.
Nanofilm Technologies International Ltd (SGX: MZH)
13 Aug 2024: Nanofilm Technologies reported a 51.1% reduction in net loss to S$3.7 million for the 1st half of 2024, compared to S$7.6 million in the same period last year, driven by a 13% increase in revenue to S$82.6 million due to stronger contributions from its advanced materials, nanofabrication, and Sydrogen business units. Despite the revenue gains, the industrial equipment segment saw a 56% decline to S$3.9 million, but the company remains optimistic about better results in the second half of the year, particularly from the 3C market during its peak season. An interim dividend payout of S$0.0033 per share was declared, same as last year.
Prime US REIT (SGX: OXMU)
13 Aug 2024: Prime US REIT sold One Town Center in Boca Raton, Florida for US$82 million, down from its 2021 purchase price of US$99.2 million, as part of its deleveraging strategy to reduce debt and increase liquidity. The REIT's 1H FY2024 gross revenue fell by 5.8% to US$73.5 million, and net property income decreased by 14% to US$40.6 million, with only 0.18 US cents per unit distributed to unitholders due to the retention of 90% of distributable income for capital expenditure needs.
PropNex Ltd (SGX: OYY)
13 Aug 2024: PropNex’s net profit for 1H FY2024 decreased by 13.8% to S$19 million, with a corresponding drop in earnings per share to S$0.0257. The decline was attributed to a 5.1% fall in revenue to S$345.6 million, primarily due to reduced commission income from project marketing services (by 5.1% to S$91.3 million), although the secondary market showed resilience with a slight increase in commission income and a significant 41.4% quarter-on-quarter rise in transactions in Q2.
Suntec REIT (SGX: T82U)
13 Aug 2024: A portfolio of strata office units in Suntec City, totalling 17,492 square feet across level 38 and 2 units on level 16 of Suntec Tower One, is up for sale via an expression of interest with a guide price of S$57.1 million. The units, currently owner-occupied, are available with vacant possession or a short-term leaseback, with the expression of interest closing at 3pm on 18 September.
UOL Group Ltd (SGX: U14)
13 Aug 2024: UOL Group reported a 3% year-on-year decline in net attributable profit to S$130.4 million for 1H FY2024, primarily due to fair value losses of S$12.2 million, compared to gains of S$3.3 million in the previous year. Despite this, pre-tax profit before fair value adjustments rose 7% to S$245.3 million, driven by higher earnings from property investments, hotel operations, and dividend income, while revenue fell 7% to S$1.27 billion due to lower contributions from property development.
Wilmar International Ltd (SGX: F34)
13 Aug 2024: Wilmar International reported a net profit of US$579.6 million for the first half of 2024, a 5.2% increase from the previous year, driven by better performance in feed, industrial products, and food segments, though partially offset by lower contributions from joint ventures and sugar milling. Despite a 4.9% decline in revenue to US$30.9 billion due to lower commodity prices, the group maintained a stable interim dividend of S$0.06 per share, same as last year, and improved gearing to 0.87 times (from 0.88 times), supported by strong operating cash flow and reduced capital expenditure.
Yangzijiang Financial Holding Ltd (SGX: YF8)
13 Aug 2024: Yangzijiang Financial reported a 33.9% decrease in net profit to S$107.4 million for the 1st half of FY2024, with earnings per share dropping to S$0.0304 (from S$0.0439 last year) due to a significant decline in interest income from debt investments in China. Despite this, the group saw growth in maritime fund assets (which leapt to S$22.1 million from S$349,000 last year, due to higher average proportion of maritime-related investments during the period) and plans to invest up to US$900 million in maritime-related assets to diversify and strengthen its portfolio.
What's New on the YouTube Channel:
Key Highlights from CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust's 1H FY2024 Results -
What's New on the Blog:
Understanding CapitaLand India Trust, CapitaLand Ascendas REIT, and CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust’s 1H FY2024 Results - https://www.thesingaporeaninvestor.sg/2024/08/13/understanding-capitaland-india-trust-capitaland-ascendas-reit-and-capitaland-integrated-commercial-trusts-1h-fy2024-results/
Disclaimer: The information provided in this post is based on my interpretation of various news reports and is intended solely for informational purposes. It does not constitute any buy or sell recommendations for the mentioned companies. Please conduct your own thorough research before making any investment decisions.