Petron Malaysia gains strong momentum in final quarter

Petron station

KUALA LUMPUR: Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd, whose net profit shrank in the first three quarters of last year, received a fourth-quarter (Q4) boost that propelled its 2016 full-year profit to surpass the previous year’s figure.

The petroleum product manufacturer and retailer said the net profit of RM112.6mil in Q4 -- which was much higher than the RM16.2mil net profit during the same period in 2015 -- was the company’s best performance for the year.

“The strong results were driven by the 13% growth in sales volume which grew to 8.3 million barrels from the 7.3 million sold in the same quarter in 2015,” the company said in its latest quarterly results report to Bursa Malaysia.

Its Q4 revenue jumped 22% to RM2.29bil, powered by an increase in sales volume as well as in oil price during the quarter. Petron noted that the benchmark Dated Brent averaged US$50 per barrel in Q4 2016, up by 14% from a year earlier.

For the 12 months to Dec 31, 2016, Petron Malaysia chalked up a net profit of RM237.6mil, an 8% gain over the preceding year’s, although revenue slipped 7% to RM7.6bil.

The company, which is 73.4% owned by the largest oil refining and marketing firm in the Philippines (Petron Corp), pointed out that although Dated Brent recovered gradually towards the end of last year, the full-year average of US$44 per barrel was still 15% lower compared to the 2015 average; hence the lower revenue registered in 2016.

The board recommended a final dividend of 22 sen per share for the financial year just ended, up from 20 sen in financial year 2015.