KUALA LUMPUR (June 21): George Kent (Malaysia) Bhd achieved a net profit of RM11.34 million for the two months ended March 31, 2021, on revenue of RM34.62 million.

In a bourse filing today, the group also reported a net profit of RM48.75 million on revenue of RM310.83 million for the 14-month period (FY21).

The board had earlier changed its financial year end from Jan 31 to March 31, making FY21 a 14-month financial year.

The group has declared a third dividend of one sen per share for FY21, payable on July 28.

George Kent said its FY21 performance was primarily attributed to robust sales of the group’s water meters worldwide.

“The group continued to receive water meter orders in spite of continuing people movement controls in Malaysia and around the world since the beginning of last year.

“This demonstrates the resilience and growth of the metering business. The group continued to adhere to prevailing standard operating procedure in managing its production activities,” it said.

George Kent chairman Tan Sri Tan Kay Hock said he is optimistic about the group’s prospects, given its ongoing operating and long-term plans.

These long-term plans include the group's strategy to continue to develop the markets for its water meters which are already the market leaders globally.

“To complement our existing range of water meters by increasing the product portfolio, our R&D team is collaborating with partners and specialists to commercialise a range of other water meters, including smart meters. The enlarged portfolio will accelerate the expansion of our global market footprint,” he said.

Tan also noted that the contract to design and build Dynacare’s glove manufacturing plant is an exciting opportunity for the group.

“The contract will boost our construction order book significantly. The contract also marks our entry into the glove manufacturing facility construction space. Demand for such facilities remains strong,” he said.

Meanwhile, he said the group’s investment into Dynacare through a 40% equity stake will provide an important new stream of sustainable and recurring long-term income for its shareholders.

He added that the group will continue to develop new opportunities in the regional railway space, leveraging its established network with international rail specialists and expertise as a rail systems specialist in domestic railway projects.

George Kent's share price closed 0.5 sen or 0.68% lower at 73.5 sen today, valuing the group at RM416.81 million.