Corporate results
(Better or in line with analyst expectations)
A net profit of Rs12.17 billion was announced by Habib Bank Limited for the nine-month period ending on September 30, according to an official notification sent by the bank to the Karachi Stock Exchange on Wednesday. Corresponding earnings of Rs12.01 per share were also declared.
The 19.5 per cent increase in profits, compared with the first nine months of 2009, comes on the back of a healthy rise in both: interest and non-interest income. The former went up almost seven per cent to Rs60 billion while the latter rose to Rs9 billion, or 13 per cent.
Meanwhile, the amount recorded under the head of ‘provisions and write-offs’ went down to Rs4.86 billion from Rs6.53 billion a year earlier, pushing up net income.
The earnings were in line with market expectations as analysts had forecast earnings per share between Rs11.3 and Rs12.4.
DG Khan Cement
(Better or in line with analyst expectations)
DG Khan Cement (DGKC) announced a profit after tax of Rs22.15 million for the quarter ended on September 30 – a massive drop of 96 per cent compared with the profit for the same period last year. This translates into earnings per share of Rs0.06 for the quarter against the Rs1.6 last year, according to a notification sent to the Karachi Stock Exchange.
The figures, however, mark an improvement on a quarterly basis as the company returned to profitability after posting a loss of about Rs155 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010.
Although analysts were divided on DGKC’s results, ranging from an expected loss per share of Rs0.04 to a profit of Rs0.85, the results were in line with IGI Securities’ prediction of earnings per share of Rs0.14.
However, research departments of leading brokerage houses are in agreement that the drop in revenue to Rs3.53 billion from Rs4.26 billion in the corresponding period is due to a decline in cement dispatches after the recent flooding.
National Refinery
(Better or in line with analyst expectations)
National Refinery Limited declared a net profit of Rs1.35 billion for the first quarter of fiscal 2011, a more than 100 per cent increase from the figure for the corresponding quarter last year. Corresponding earnings of Rs16.87 per share were also announced in a notification sent to the Karachi Stock Exchange on Wednesday.
The refinery’s net sales for the period jumped 67 per cent to Rs33.39 billion. “The results are in line with market expectations,” commented Faisal Shaji from Standard Capital Securities. “The company was able to take advantage of rising oil prices in the form of inventory gains,” he added. Meanwhile, Ali Taufiq from BMA Capital pointed out that the utilisation rate in September noticeably improved compared with previous months. The finance cost incurred by the refinery reduced to Rs64.04 million from the Rs143.72 million incurred in the same period last year.
PTCL
(Lower than analyst expectations)
Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) reported a net profit of Rs2.08 billion for the first quarter (July-September) of fiscal 2011, a decrease of about 19 per cent compared with the same period last year.
PTCL’s revenue also dropped by more than four per cent, despite the fact that the company has been vying to develop new sources of income on the commercial side. “Revenue has been falling because traffic is shifting towards cellular networks,” commented Sana Abdullah from IGI Securities.
Although revenue for the quarter went down, the company’s cost of services swelled almost nine per cent to Rs10.19 billion. “The costs went up mainly because of the increase in salaries,” added Abdullah. Moreover, administrative and marketing expenditure also increased.
Earnings per share for the period fell to Rs0.41 from Rs0.5 from the first quarter of the previous fiscal year, according to a notification sent to the Karachi Stock Exchange on Wednesday.
Hubco
(Lower than analyst expectations)
Hub Power Company (Hubco) witnessed a 14 per cent increase in the net profit to Rs1.27 billion for the first quarter of fiscal 2011 against Rs1.11 billion in the same period last year. This growth in profitability is mainly attributed to an uptick in the company’s tariff profile expected to continue till the end of the existing project life, said an analyst.
Moreover, the depreciating rupee against the dollar also supported the growth in Hubco’s earnings, said JS Global Capital analyst Umer Ayaz. The company’s tariff structure is indexed to the rupee devaluation along with the US Consumer Price Index. The result was almost seven per cent lower than market expectations as a consensus of three research firms estimated the result to be in the vicinity of Rs1.36 billion.
Net sales of the company increased 14.5 per cent to Rs25.2 billion against Rs22 billion posted in the same period last year, according to a notice sent to the Karachi Stock Exchange. The company owns an oil-fired power station with a capacity of 1,200 megawatts in Balochistan while another oil-fired power station with a capacity of 214 megawatts is under construction in Narowal, Punjab.
Indus Motor
(Lower than analyst expectations)
Indus Motor Company Limited’s net profit slowed 24 per cent to Rs577 million during July to September as cost of doing business increased.
Net profit of the company stood at Rs577 million or Rs7.35 per share in the quarter ended September 30 against Rs759 million or Rs9.66 per share in the same period last year.
The result was 15 per cent lower than expected as research firms estimated the profit to be around Rs682 million. The profits slowed down despite an increase in sales as the rupee depreciated 13 per cent on a yearly basis against the Japanese yen. Indus Motor imports most of its parts from Japan and assembles them locally.
Net sales surged 20 per cent to Rs14.3 billion compared with Rs11.94 billion posted in the same period last year. In September, 11,507 units were sold by the company against 10,070 sold in the same period last year.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 28th, 2010.
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