KUALA LUMPUR (June 4): Corporate earnings for the first quarter of 2022 have been described as mixed by analysts, with some companies continuing to benefit from elevated commodity prices, while others see their recovery impacted by margin compression as input costs rise.

According to Bloomberg data, of the companies that reported their quarterly results in the recent earnings season, 337 posted a year-on-year (y-o-y) growth in earnings per share, 496 delivered weaker EPS and six maintained their EPS. 

Based on the latest quarterly results, have the fundamentals matched the share price performance of the stock?

We picked three sectors — technology, plantations and the glove makers — looking at their price earnings ratio of both past and present, to figure that out.

Separately, we reviewed the top 100 companies on Bursa by market capitalisation and found that many large cap companies saw a y-o-y deterioration in their net cash or debt position over the past year, compared with those that saw an improvement.

Bloomberg data showed that 52 companies had a decline in cash position between the end of the first quarter of 2021 and the end of the first quarter of 2022 — a comparison between conditions at the peak of the pandemic last year and as the country transitioned to endemicity.

In another story, we also dived deeper into the plantation sector, looking at players that will be able to continue keeping their earnings firm when the crude palm oil (CPO) prices finally fizzles.

Read more on the round up of 1Q earnings for 2022 in The Edge Malaysia weekly's June 6, 2022 issue.

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