PETALING JAYA: IJM Corp Bhd
expects to deliver better results in the financial year ending March 31, 2027 (FY27), supported by a sustainable construction margin of about 6%, its strong order books and resilient demand for building materials.
The group also plans to list its construction arm, IJM Construction Sdn Bhd, on Bursa Malaysia by the third quarter (3Q) of 2027.
Group chief executive officer and managing director Datuk Lee Chun Fai said the proposed listing is still subject to the necessary approvals and other conditions, adding that IJM Construction’s strong order book and earnings visibility would support the planned initial public offering (IPO).
He also said the group is confident of maintaining its improved operating momentum.
“With this, we think we should have a good year ahead. We are fairly confident, and with the very strong construction order book that we have, we are on track,” Lee said at a press conference after IJM’s annual general meeting yesterday.
The company’s 1Q revenue rose 32.2% year-on-year to RM2.29bil, while profit before tax (PBT) increased 32.1% to RM201.8mil.
IJM’s net profit climbed 43.7% to RM137.4mil. Moreover, its shares had recorded a year-to-date gain of approximately 24%.
“I think this quarter basically signified a very good beginning and a rebound in IJM’s performance.
“Last year, we went through some challenges,” Lee noted.
He said the latest quarter included approximately RM20mil in foreign- exchange (forex) gains, compared with approximately RM7mil in the corresponding quarter.
“During the quarter, we had about RM20mil in forex gains. If you strip it off, it would be about RM180mil in PBT, which is still very much higher than last year,” Lee said.
IJM secured RM1.77bil of new construction jobs in FY27 to date, including a RM658mil hyperscale data centre package in Elmina and RM909.5mil of semiconductor and medical technology projects.
Its RM14.5bil outstanding construction order book provides multi-year earnings visibility, while the group is targeting RM6bil to RM8bil of new construction jobs for FY27.
“If you look at construction, it is always a blended margin from multiple projects. We are doing about a 6% margin, and I think that is something which is sustainable,” Lee said.
“Unless there is a big erosion in the margin, as per our budget, we should be able to achieve a better result compared with last year,” he added.
The industry division secured a record 953,000 tonnes of pile orders during the quarter, bringing its remaining pile order book to more than one million tonnes.
The division’s quarterly revenue rose 42.3% to RM443.8mil, while PBT increased to RM61.7mil.
“So, that’s a record that we have, and things are looking quite good. Four years of record profit, (we are) on track for a fifth year of record profit,” Lee said.
In the meantime, the property division recorded RM603.5mil in 1Q sales and had approximately RM2.2bil in unbilled sales.
“Property had a wonderful 1Q. They did RM600mil for the 1Q, and the target is RM1.8bil to RM2bil. That seems to be on track as well,” he said.
Meanwhile, IJM has distributed or declared RM575mil to shareholders within the first five months of its three-year RM3bil distribution programme.
Lee said the programme is the company’s commitment to returning value to shareholders while maintaining focus on strengthening its underlying businesses.
“What is important is the performance of the company. You must have a good order book and you must have good earnings. We will focus on that, and the rest will follow,” Lee said.
“We are confident that with the performance of the company, we will be able to continue with the distribution (plan),” he added.
