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May 26, 2011

PROTON Posts RM81 Million Profit Before Tax In Q4 2010/11


PROTON's domestic sales volume for the quarter have grown by more than 21% compared to the immediate preceding quarter (44,870 units vs. 36,943 units in Quarter 3) mainly contributed by sales of three core-models, the Persona, Saga and Exora, and by the launch of the Inspira.
PROTON's domestic sales volume for the quarter have grown by more than 21% compared to the immediate preceding quarter (44,870 units vs. 36,943 units in Quarter 3) mainly contributed by sales of three core-models, the Persona, Saga and Exora, and by the launch of the Inspira.

Arising from this, the Group returned to profitability recording a profit before tax of RM81 million, as compared to the loss of RM51 million in the last quarter. The improvement is mainly due to better performance for the PROTON cars business and to a lesser extent, Lotus Group International Limited (LGIL). Operationally, LGIL performed better on
account of higher sales volume.

The growing demand for Proton cars was reflected in revenue for the quarter under review soaring to RM2.6 billion compared to RM2.2 billion recorded during the corresponding period in the previous financial year.

Group profit before taxation for the year ending March 31st 2011 at RM215 million is lower than the profit of RM261 million posted in the previous financial year. This decline is largely attributed to higher branding costs and restructuring expenses incurred by LGIL which is undergoing a business transformation exercise over the next five years.

These efforts have already culminated with the global unveiling of five new Lotus sports cars that are due to go on sale as early as 2013.

This was however, partly offset by higher contribution from the PROTON cars business which grew from RM239 million to RM365 million this year. The improvement is due to the cumulative result from the execution of various initiatives and operational improvements over the last few years such as cost control through Process &
Operational Excellence an Value Added Value Engineering - commonly known as PROPEX and VAVE respectively, manufacturing efficiency and dealers' and vendors' rationalization.

The Group’s cash position also improved compared to the last quarter and is now above RM1 billion. This is the result of concerted efforts to better manage funds and inventories at all operating units within the Group.

“Group performance in the fourth quarter is largely driven by a positive economic landscape that resulted in an increase in overall vehicle sales in the domestic market. Group performance is also backed by the introduction of models that offered us better profit margins,” said PROTON Holdings Berhad Chairman Dato’ Sri Mohd Nadzmi Mohd
Salleh.

Dato’ Sri Mohd Nadzmi also added that LGIL will continue to invest in order to achieve its business transformation plans. “Financial resources have been allocated towards the investment in the current range of products while ensuring that development of future products continues to progress in order to re-position and strengthen LGIL to compete with other premium sports car marques. LGIL will also continue to invest in brand equity improvement through active marketing and motorsports, rationalization of sales and after-sales network, as well as production capabilities.”

“Prospects for the current financial year remain challenging with the anticipated disruption in parts supply from Japan due to the recent earthquake. While Malaysia’s total industry volume is projected to breach 600,000 units in 2011, the Group is cautious of uncertainties surrounding the global automotive industry particularly the anticipated volatility in the Japanese Yen and the spiraling prices of fuel and raw materials which could adversely affect earnings. However, the Group will continue to invest in the development of new technologies and improve operational efficiencies to sustain earnings.”

Meanwhile, PROTON’s Group Managing Director Dato’ Sri Haji Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir said higher research and development (R&D) expenditure incurred during the quarter has been effectively offset by R&D grants provided under the Government’s Hybrid and Electric Vehicle programme.

The development of a new age of vehicles, Dato’ Sri Haji Syed Zainal Abidin said, is one of the strategies being pursued to elevate PROTON into a globally-competitive car manufacturer, and that the company was currently in the final stages of testing and validating vehicles powered by alternative fuel propulsion systems with the first
commercially-available Malaysian-made model to be sold as early as 2012.

“As the automotive industry places greater importance on the prospects of green technology, among the many challenges we are faced with is identifying the right technologies and solutions that will be capable of addressing sustainable mobility for the future. There has been a conscious and significant shift towards greener motoring
globally, particularly in advanced countries, largely due to the values, benefits and advantages such technologies offer. This is a potentially new and growing market that PROTON can capitalize on.”

He added that PROTON continues to strengthen its position domestically and globallythrough the continual introduction of new models and variants, greater drive for quality and affordability and pursuing opportunities in new markets. These efforts also focus on establishing better integration and cohesiveness within the Group’s entire
operations which recently led to the establishment of two centralized vehicle logistics and pre-delivery inspection system (CLASS) hubs in Sijangkang and Tanjung Malim and the introduction of a second tier of spare parts under the brand name PROTON AMP offering customers original equipment manufacturer (OEM) safety and quality
standards but at more affordable prices among others.-proton.com


 2010/2011
(31/03/2011)
RM'000
2009/2010
(31/03/2010)
RM'000
Profit/ (loss)before taxation - individual80,85412,904
Profit/ (loss)before taxation - cumulative215,233260,893
Revenue (Q4)- individual2,618,2752,257,218
Revenue (Q4)- cumulative8,981,7328,226,859
Cash, Bank balances deposits (unaudited)1,278,9191,652,089
Total Current Assets (unaudited)3,952,4333,880,614

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