Singapore Post (SingPost) has reported earnings of $78.3 million for the FY2024 ended March 31, 217.4% higher y-o-y. The earnings surge is mainly due to an exceptional gain of $36.8 million on property revaluation.
The group’s earnings for the 2HFY2024 stood at $66.9 million, 93.4% higher y-o-y, as exceptional items surged by 138.7% y-o-y to $38.8 million during the six-month period.
FY2024 group revenue fell by 9.9% y-o-y to $1.69 billion mainly due to the lower sea freight revenues. In its release, the group says the operating fundamentals of its core businesses have improved but was offset by the lower operating profit from Famous Holdings.
“Our transformation continues to yield results in our core businesses as we execute our strategy,” says group CEO Vincent Phang. SingPost announced its five key strategies from its strategic review on March 19.
During the year, logistics revenue fell by 11.9% y-o-y to $1.17 billion while operating profit fell by 20.5% y-o-y to $67.4 million. The lower figures were mainly due to the lower sea freight rates and volumes post-pandemic, which affected the revenue and profit contributions from Famous Holdings, and more than offset the growth in SingPost’s Australia business.
The operations of Quantium Solutions have been re-engineered into SingPost’s new international business segment. The group adds that it saw an improved performance after driving operational efficiency and phasing out low-yielding warehousing contracts.
See also: IHH Healthcare’s 3QFY2024 patmi remains flat at RM534 mil
Post and parcel revenue for domestic and international fell by 1.98% y-o-y to $514.1 million although the segment reported an operating profit of $7.5 million reversing from an operating loss of $12.0 million the year before. The domestic post and parcel business saw higher revenue due to an 11% y-o-y growth in e-commerce volumes as well as the postage rate adjustment in October 2023. The international post and parcel business also saw an improved performance, according to SingPost, thanks to operational synergies and cost management.
Property revenue increased by 1.4% y-o-y to $77.7 million while operating profit rose by 5.1% y-o-y to $42.2 million due to positive rental reversions at SingPost Centre. As at March 31, SingPost Centre’s overall occupancy fell by 2 percentage points y-o-y to 96.2%. The occupancy rate for its retail space stood at 99.6% while its office space had an occupancy rate of 94.8%.
The board has recommended a final one-tier dividend of 0.56 cents per share. Including the interim dividend of 0.18 cents per share, the year’s total dividend would amount to 0.74 cents per share, or 40% of SingPost’s underlying profit.
See also: Marco Polo Marine reports lower 2HFY2024 earnings of $10.7 mil, down 42% y-o-y
The proposed dividend is subject to shareholders’ approval at its next annual general meeting (AGM).
As at March 31, cash and cash equivalents stood at $476.7 million.
Shares in SingPost closed 1 cent higher or 2.22% up at 46 cents on May 9.
