Sentoria net profit grows 24% in first year of listing

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 30 (Friday): Sentoria Group Bhd, property developer and operator of Bukit Gambang Resort City (BGRC) ended its first year as a listed entity with a group net profit of RM47.8 million for FYE 30 Sept, 2012.

Its net profit increased to 24% from RM38.5 million a year ago, while revenue grew by 10.4% to RM179.3 million from RM162.4 million.

About 66% or RM118.4 million of revenue was derived from its property development segment, up from RM114 million last year.

Sentoria attributed this to encouraging sales of its property projects located primarily in Kuantan, Pahang.

The group's leisure and hospitality segment also saw revenue grow by 14.2% to RM55.3 million from RM48.4 million due to higher patronage to BGRC.

"On one hand, we witnessed increased buyer acceptance for our property projects, including Desa Hijauan, Taman Bukit Rangin, as well as Arabian Bay Resort in BGRC under the sale-and- leaseback basis,” said Sentoria’s head of public and investor relations Nasiruddin Nasrun.

"At the same time, the group's raised profile through our listing, bolstered by constant marketing efforts, helped to improve patronage to BGRC to about 610,000 visitors - registering commendable growth from 522,000 in the corresponding period last year,” he added.

The group's basic earnings per share for FY2012 is 12.8 sen.

For its 4Q2012, the group posted a revenue of RM43.9 million while group net profit was RM16.8 million. There is no comparison to the previous corresponding quarter as the group is within the first year of preparation of consolidated results after listing on the Bursa Malaysia's main market on Feb 23.

Sentoria has announced a final single tier dividend of one sen per share, which will be tabled for shareholders' approval at the upcoming annual general meeting.

Along with the interim dividend of one sen per share, paid on 28 June 2012, this translates to a total dividend payout of RM8 million in respect of FY2012, representing 16.7% of group net profit.

"We intend to raise the bar in the coming year, and this is demonstrated in our strategies going forward. We plan to launch RM400 million worth of properties in the next financial year, including subsequent phases of the uniquely feature-rich Global Heritage South catering to higher-end buyers."

“Alongside the government's call to boost tourism activities in the country, BGRC plans to draw even more leisure tourists and corporate groups for meetings and conventions. To this end, we have not only recently increased our accommodation and function room capacity, but also planned for additional theme park attractions in the pipeline."

Sentoria Group Berhad was established in 1998 and is the developer of BGRC in Kuantan, Pahang. The group has also developed affordable housing primarily in Kuantan, Pahang.