Nestle Malaysia proposes higher payout

KUALA LUMPUR: Nestle (Malaysia) Bhd has proposed a higher final dividend payout for the year ended Dec 31, 2017 after the company reported a surge in net profit in the last quarter.

Earnings in the fourth quarter rose to RM133.5mil from RM66.9mil made a year ago on lower spending on marketing as well as cost savings, as revenue improved 2.5% to RM1.28bil.

“In the year under review, investments were well spread over the four quarters, compared with the previous year which saw exceptionally high marketing spend in the last quarter due to the early Chinese New Year,” Nestle said in a statement today.

Full year net profit improved by about 1.3% to RM645.8mil, or RM2.75 a share.

Revenue increased by 3.9% to RM5.3bil supported by strong export and domestic businesses, which grew 3% and 4.1% respectively.

The group has proposed a final dividend of RM1.35 sen a share, which will bring its total payout for the year to RM2.75 per share.

“Whilst 2018 will continue to be challenging, we will work towards ensuring our company’s sustainable growth through our focus on continuous efficiency increases throughout our supply chain, while reinvesting the realised savings into future growth,” its chief executive officer Alois Hofbauer said.