SINGAPORE (May 31): KSH Holdings has announced FY19 earnings of $7.7 million for FY19, down 74.8% from a restated $30.4 million in FY18 after changes to accounting treatment which are in line with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
This comes mainly due to a lower share of results of associates and joint ventures, where the results of residential development projects in Singapore were impacted due to the IFRS Interpretations Committee’s recent decision to expense borrowing costs related to completed and ready-to-sell residential development properties regardless of sold or unsold unit.
Revenue for FY19 nonetheless registered a 51.4% increase to $200 million from a restated $132 million previously.
The group’s overall topline growth was driven mainly by the core construction business, where revenue growth more than offset lower rental income due to KSH’s investment property in Tianjin, China.
Project revenue rose 54.2% to $194.3 million while rental income from inveestment properties fell 6.3% to $5.7 million.
Other income rose 5.1% to $11.3 million.
In terms of operating expenses, cost of construction rose 73.9% to $168.1 million in FY19 in line with higher construction works done – although personnel expenses fell 4.4% to $10.5 million on lower provision for management and staff bonuses.
Following the implementation of the IFRS’s proposed change in accounting treatment, the group’s share of losses of associates widened to $13.6 million from its $2.6 million loss in FY18.
Share of joint venture gains fell 65.6 million to $4.2 million in FY19 compared to the $12.3 million gain a year ago.
As at end-April, the group’s has a construction orderbook of over $486 million after securing a $55.4 million construction project recently.
KSH also says it has sold over 2,200 units in four property units – Affinity@Serangoon, Riverfront Residences, Park Colonial and Rezi 24 – to date, all with positive margins.
The group has proposed a final dividend of 1.2 cents, bringing FY19’s total dividend to 2.2 cents.
“Moving forward, we will continue to closely monitor the market situation and seek to capture opportunities with our financial flexibility given our strong balance sheet, comprehensive suite of capabilities, high productivity and proven track record, along with our BCA A1 grade which allows us to participate in tenders of any size,” says Choo Chee Onn, executive chairman and managing director of KSH.
Shares in the group closed half a cent higher at 45 cents on Thursday.
