KUALA LUMPUR: Loss-making Malayan United Industries Bhd (MUI) is in “serious discussions” to explore the possibilities of selling certain substantial assets.
It said on Tuesday the serious discussions with a potential party to dispose of the assets was to realise their value.
“Once discussions are completed and an agreement is entered into, the company will make full disclosure of the transaction,” it said.
MUI also reminded the shareholders there is no certainty as to the outcome of the discussions.
In its third quarter ended Sept 30, 2014, it posted net losses of RM2.31mil compared with net profit of RM15.92mil a year ago. Its revenue fell 7.5% to RM150.76mil from RM162.95mil.
For Q3, group revenue rose to RM150.8mil but recorded lower profit before tax (PBT) of RM300,000 compared with a lower revenue of RM144.80mil and higher PBT of RM6.8mil in Q2,FY14.
“Higher revenue in the current quarter was attributed to higher revenue from the retailing, hotels and foods & confectionery divisions. The lower PBT in the current quarter was mainly attributed to the higher exceptional loss arising from foreign currency translations and provision for legal claim,” it said.
MUI said in the nine months ended Sept 30, 2014, it swung into the red with net losses of RM3.07mil compared with earnings of RM17.31mil. Its revenue fell 6.2% to RM441.18mil from RM470.25mil. It recorded lower PBT of RM7.2m compared with PBT of RM41.3mil.
In the food & confectionery division, the lower revenue and PBT was due to lower domestic sales. The property division recorded lower PBT for the current financial period under review compared with the same period last financial year.
Lower PBT for the current financial period under review was mainly due to provision for legal settlement in the US and the one-off gain on disposal of development land in Port Dickson in the corresponding period last financial year.
However, the property development project in Bandar Springhill performed better in the current financial period. The gross profit margin increased from 38% to 49% in the current financial period under review.
The higher gross profit margin was due to the higher gross profit margin in both property development and sale of palm oil fruits.
The gross profit margin from property development increased from 33% in the same period last financial year to 40% in the current financial period under review whilst gross profit margin from sale of palm oil fruits increased from 62% in the same period last financial year to 73% in the current financial period under review.
In the UK retailing division, Laura Ashley Holdings plc reported that trading for the five weeks from July 27, 2014 to Aug 30, 2014 was up 8% on a like-for-like basis, taking the cumulative like-for-like performance for the year to +2.3%.
For the retail division in Malaysia, Metrojaya recorded lower revenue and PBT due to the weaker performance in departmental stores and certain specialty stores.
The group’s hotel operations in Malaysia recorded marginal increase in revenue mainly attributed to the higher occupancy rate at Corus Hotel Kuala Lumpur.
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