KUALA LUMPUR: IHH Healthcare Bhd
’s net profit for the first quarter ended March 31, 2023 (1Q23) jumped to RM1.39bil from RM493.25mil posted in the same quarter last year.
The stellar net profit performance was boosted primarily by one-off gains from the sale of International Medical University (IMU) and the strong patient volume growth.
Revenue rose 24% to RM5.14bil as the group saw more patients from across its key markets, IHH said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia yesterday.
The board has declared a special dividend of 9.6 sen per ordinary share for the financial year 2023 (FY23) from the divestment of IMU, representing a 100% payout of the gains from the sale, payable on June 30, 2023.
Meanwhile, the group’s return on equity was 9.1% as at end-March 2023.
On prospects, IHH said it expects robust revenue growth to continue and will maintain a tight rein on costs and leverage operational synergies to mitigate near-term headwinds from inflationary and interest rate pressures.
It said the group will continually reviews its asset portfolio and will divest any non-core and/or non-performing assets at an appropriate time.
On Feb 27, 2023 and March 31, 2023, the group completed the divestment of Gleneagles Chengdu Hospital and IMU, respectively.
IHH said it will also grow organically by adding about 2,000 new beds in Malaysia, India and Turkiye over the next three years, while exploring other strategic opportunities to meet the growing healthcare needs and demand both locally and from the region.
“The group will also seek earnings-accretive opportunities to acquire assets across Asia and Europe, backed by its healthy balance sheet,” it added. — Bernama
