Geo Energy Resources resumed its share buybacks after nearly a month. On Jan 11, the Indonesia-based coal miner acquired 500,000 shares on the open market at 32 cents each.
Earlier, on Jan 9 and 10, the company had acquired 295,200 shares and 855,000 shares respectively on the open market at 31 cents each. These purchases bring the total number of shares bought back under the current mandate to more than 9.88 million shares.
Before these two days, Geo Energy last bought shares on Dec 20, acquiring one million shares at 33.5 cents each.
Earlier on Dec 13, it had acquired more than 2.03 million shares at between 31 cents and 31.5 cents each. On Dec 14, it also bought back 1.4 million shares at 34 cents each while on Dec 16, it acquired 800,000 shares at between 33.5 cents and 34 cents each.
In 3QFY2022 ended Sept 30, 2022, the company sold a smaller volume of coal but because of higher average selling prices, revenue for the quarter was up 7% y-o-y to US$165 million ($220 million). Earnings for the quarter came in at US$36 million versus US$45 million in 3QFY2021 because of higher costs and other expenses.
Flushed with cash from the past year of healthy profits, Geo Energy declared a third interim dividend of 1 cent each, bringing the total FY2022 dividend payout to five cents per share. This amount represents a payout ratio of 36% for its net 9MFY2022 earnings. The company is trading at an annualised priceto-earnings ratio of less than two times and below its enterprise value of US$162 million.
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Geo Energy expects coal prices to remain strong in the near term in line with the overall energy market. The company notes that demand for coal has further increased due to the larger-than-expected coal consumption amid an extreme summer season, which reinforced the pressure on coal restocking with winter looming
Regional recruiter buys back shares
HRnetGroup is steadily buying back shares. The most recent transaction took place on Jan 11 when it bought back 200,000 shares on the open market at 80 cents each.
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The company has been regularly buying back this volume of shares at the same price, on Jan 9, 10 and 11 for instance. As at Jan 11, the company has bought back more than 14.2 million shares, spending more than $10 million on the buybacks.
HRnetGroup runs an extensive network of recruitment agencies across the region. Besides being an asset-light business, it has practically no debt yet sits on a cash balance of around $300 million.
The company’s plan to buy back up to $30 million worth of shares was first announced on June 13, 2022. “The programme allows the company to purchase its shares when such shares may be undervalued due to market conditions,” said the company then.
“Shares repurchased under the programme will be held as treasury shares which could be used for employee share plans and also as possible currency for merger and acquisition (M&A) activities. As the group embarks on acquisitions, using shares as acquisition currency would help align the interests of co-owners of acquired businesses with that of the group,” adds HRnetGroup.
On Aug 15 2022, the company announced it was moving into its 15th city of operation in the southern Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung, with a capital of $1 million committed. On Dec 28, 2022, the company announced that its local operating unit had received the Profit Private Employment Service Agency licence from the Kaohsiung city government.
“HRnetGroup has the largest consulting force of more than 150 people in Taipei. It is a natural progression for us to extend our product offerings and services to clients in such a city like Kaohsiung which has a high growth potential. We will continue to invest strongly in growth,” says HRnetGroup’s founding chairman Sim Yong Siang.
