Thomson Medical Group has reversed out of the red in FY2021 ended June with earnings of $16.9 million, compared to a loss of $98.0 million in FY2020.
This came on the back of a 11.2% increase in revenue to $240.4 million from $216.1 million last year with all business segments seeing improvement.
Revenue from Hospital and Specialised Services segments grew by 4.0% and 23.9% respectively. The growth was mainly due to higher overall patient loads and increase in average bill sizes as a result of business recovery from Covid-19 impact. Its core services of obstetrics, gynaecology, and paediatrics saw growth.
In Singapore, the revenue growth was further augmented by the additional income received from managing the Covid-19 serology testing operations for migrant workers housed at the dormitories and isolation facilities, as well as managing three vaccination centres as part of the group’s efforts in supporting the Singapore government’s Covid-19 vaccination programme.
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In Malaysia, revenue continues to improve due to higher case intensity handled.
Other income was 15% higher y-o-y at $11.9 million, mainly due to higher government grant received under the Jobs Support Scheme and property tax rebates granted by the Singapore government to provide support to Singapore employers during the Covid-19 pandemic.
During the period, the group managed to pare down its other operating expenses by 61.1% y-o-y to $61.2 million, mainly due to the absence of one-off non-cash impairment of $93.4 million recorded on the 9.23 ha freehold land located within the Iskandar Development Region in Johor Bahru, Malaysia last year. The decrease was also due to cost-saving measures implemented by the group to mitigate the impact of Covid-19.
The overall decrease in cost was partially offset by the increase in staff costs by 10.7% to $74.9 million, mainly due to higher headcounts and salary adjustments in a bid to maintain salary competitiveness for our staff.
As at end-June, cash and cash equivalents stood at $112.1 million.
The board has declared a final dividend of 0.015 cent per share.
Dr Wong Chiang Yin, group executive director and group CEO says, "Singapore is our key market accounting for nearly three quarters of our revenue. The gradual reopening of the economy has been helpful particularly for non-critical services which were adversely affected last year as parents postponed treatments due to the pandemic."
"Moving forward, management is cautiously optimistic of prospects in Southeast Asia where growing affluence and demographic factors will drive demand for private healthcare. Our healthy cash position will provide a strong buttress as we invest in our core services while leveraging on technology to make healthcare as accessible as possible to patients in the region," adds Dr Wong, who is looking to expand the group's presence in overseas markets.
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Shares in Thomson Medical closed 2.3% lower at 8.5 cents on Aug 27.
Photo: Thomson Medical Group
