PETALING JAYA: Mazda 3 sales should continue to anchor Bermaz Auto Bhd
’s (BAuto) earnings for the financial year ending April 30, 2027 (FY27), says CGS International (CGSI) Research following the group’s stronger than expected first quarter performance.
The research house said BAuto recorded a core net profit of RM42mil for the quarter ended July 31, 2026 (1Q27), outperforming its forecast as well as the consensus estimate by 10% and 8%, respectively.
“The beat was mainly driven by a stronger-than-expected earnings before interest and taxes margin of 10.2% (FY26: 8.6%) on the back of a richer sales mix from higher-margin Mazda 3 sales, supported by ringgit/yen appreciation during the quarter and depletion of high cost inventory,” it said.
BAuto’s year-to-date Mazda sales for the first seven months of 2026 surged by 47% year-on-year (y-o-y), surpassing total industry volume growth y-o-y of 3% significantly, CGSI Research noted.
Mazda sales have averaged around 1,000 units per month in 2026 from a previous low of 600 to 700 units, it added.
“We believe completely built-up (CBU) Mazda 3 1.5L will remain BAuto’s key volume and earnings driver in FY27,” it said, highlighting that Mazda 3 accounted for about 61% of Mazda Malaysia sales for 1Q27.
The research house anticipates healthy Mazda demand for 2026, underpinned by monthly Mazda 3 deliveries of 600 to 700 units and incremental volume from the new Mazda CX-5, which has had around 600 bookings and is expected to start deliveries in Sept 2026.
Moreover, BAuto said freight costs were manageable, which serves to limit cost pressure as CBU models make up 60% to 70% of the group’s volumes, CGSI Research added.
Additionally, the group declared a two sen dividend for 1Q27.
“We raise our FY27 dividend forecast to eight sen, representing a 70% payout ratio, below its five-year average of 80%, suggesting room for a higher payout,” the research house said.
