Mah Sing records property sales of RM536m in Jan-April

KUALA LUMPUR: Mah Sing Group Bhd recorded property sales of RM536mil in the four months ended April 30, 2016 and plans to undertake RM1.8bil of launches in the second half of 2016.

The property developer said on Thursday it posted earnings of RM95.03mil in the first quarter ended March 31, 2016, which was a slight dip from the RM98.89mil a year ago.

Revenue declined 9.5% to RM709.17mil from RM784.14mil. Earnings per share were  3.18 sen compared with 4.64 sen.

Among the main points of its Q1 financial performance was a healthy balance sheet with cash pile of RM1.1bil and net gearing of only 0.09 times, which gave it the flexibility to respond to land acquisitions and investment opportunities.

“Strong unbilled sales of RM4.53bil or 1.61 times revenue recognised from property in 2015, and will provide ample short term liquidity," it said.

Commenting on its plans for the second half of 2016, it said that it planned more launches as the first quarter of the year was a typically shorter working quarter following the festive seasons. In spite of that, the Group achieved property sales of RM407.9mil in Q1.

“As at March 31, 2016, a total of approximately RM32.26bil comprising unbilled sales of approximately RM4.53bil combined with remaining GDV of approximately RM27.73bil is expected to support eight to nine years of revenue growth,” it said.