- 9m15 revenue breaches RM1 billion mark on strong sales of PCs, tablets and smartphones
- Declares interim dividend of 3.0 sen per share and special dividend of 5.0 sen, to be paid on 10 December 2015
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 4 November 2015 – Malaysia’s leading ICT distributor ECS ICT Berhad (ECS, 佳杰科技; Bloomberg: ECS MK; Reuters: ECSI.KL) recorded a 13.1% jump in net profit to RM22.1 million for the cumulative nine months ended 30 September 2015 (9m15) from RM19.6 million previously, due to favourable sales mix.
Group revenue in 9m15 leaped 23.4% to RM1.4 billion from RM1.1 billion a year ago. This was largely boosted by higher sales of personal computers (PCs) and mobility products namely smartphones and tablets, which elevated the ICT Distribution’s revenue by 32.5% to RM1.0 billion in 9m15 from RM792.0 million previously.
Revenue from the Group’s Enterprise Systems and ICT Services segments grew 3.0% and 1.7% respectively to RM320.9 million and RM36.7 million in 9m15, from RM311.5 million and RM36.1 million respectively.
“Despite the overall dampened consumer sentiment, our ICT Distribution segment continued to expand strongly, recording the ninth consecutive year-on-year growth in quarterly sales. This was primarily led by our expanded portfolio especially in the mobility products space, as we added new smartphone brands and latest product lines distributed through our channels.
We are certainly attuned to the future market trends and endeavour to bring in next-generation products in tandem with readiness of the Malaysian market.”
Mr. Soong Jan Hsung (宋昭雄)
Chief Executive Officer, ECS ICT Berhad
Meanwhile revenue for ECS’ third quarter ended 30 September 2015 (3Q15) increased 18.6% to RM465.1 million, from RM392.0 million a year ago.
The Group’s ICT Distribution segment grew 28.6% to RM358.0 million in 3Q15 as compared to RM278.5 million previously. However, Enterprise Systems and ICT Services dipped to RM94.1 million and RM13.0 million respectively in 3Q15, versus RM98.5 million and RM15.0 million in the past year.
The less favourable product mix due to lower Enterprise Systems sales, coupled with the strengthened US Dollar against the Malaysian Ringgit, resulted in group net profit declining to RM4.8 million in 3Q15 from RM7.3 million previously.
ECS declared a single-tier interim dividend of 3.0 sen per share in respect of its financial year ending 31 December 2015 (FY2015). In conjunction with the Group’s 30th Anniversary, the Board also announced a special dividend of 5.0 sen per share.
Together, this translates to dividend payout of RM14.4 million or 65.0% of 9m15 net profit. The dividend will be paid on 10 December 2015, based on the Record of Depository on 27 November 2015.
| Financial Summary (Unaudited Consolidated Results) | ||||||
| RM’000 | 3Q15 30.09.15 | 3Q14 30.09.14 | Change (%) | 9m15 30.09.15 | 9m14 30.09.14 | Change (%) |
| Revenue | 465,105 | 392,011 | 18.6% | 1,406,750 | 1,139,646 | 23.4% |
| Pre-tax Profit | 6,493 | 9,109 | -28.7% | 29,869 | 26,109 | 14.4% |
| Net profit to shareholders | 4,755 | 7,282 | -34.7% | 22,145 | 19,582 | 13.1% |
| Basic EPS (sen) | 2.6 | 4.0 | -35.0% | 12.3 | 10.9 | 12.8% |
| *Based on 180 million shares of RM0.50 par value each | ||||||
ABOUT ECS ICT BERHAD
ECS ICT Berhad (ECS), an MSC-status company, and its group of subsidiaries started in 1985 with the establishment of ECS KU Sdn Bhd. Today, the Group is a leading distribution hub for Information & Communications Technology (ICT) products in Malaysia via ECS ASTAR Sdn. Bhd. and ECS PERICOMP Sdn. Bhd.
Listed on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia Securities Berhad on 15 April 2010, ECS is an associate company of ECS Holdings Limited which is one of the leading ICT distributors in Asia Pacific, accessing to a network of more than 25,000 channel partners across China, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, Cambodia and Myanmar.
ECS distributes a comprehensive range of ICT products comprising notebooks, personal computers, smartphones, smartwatches, tablets, printers, software, network and communication infrastructure, servers, and enterprise software from more than 30 leading principals.
With a nationwide channel network of more than 5,500 resellers comprising retailers, system integrators and corporate dealers, ECS also provides value-added product support and technical services. For more information, please visit www.ecsm.com.my
Issued for and on behalf of ECS ICT BERHAD by Aquilas Advisory (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd.
For general enquiries, please contact:
Caren Lwee
Tel: +603 6286 8201 / +6012 626 6855
E-Mail: carenlwee@ecsm.com.my
For media enquiries, please contact:
Julia Pong
Tel: +603 2711 1391 / + 6012 3909 258
E-Mail: julia@aquilas.com.my
