KUALA LUMPUR (March 27): Shares in Genting Bhd and Genting Malaysia Bhd (GenM) rallied in early trade on Monday (March 27) on a possible exit from the Miami property market with big gains.

At 10.05am, Genting had gained six sen to RM4.56, while GenM had increased five sen to RM2.60.

Maybank Investment Bank Bhd (Maybank IB) said that more than a decade after entering the Miami property market, GenM is likely to exit it but with a whopping profit.

The company could recognise a gain on disposal of about RM2.9 billion, assuming the waterfront is sold for US$1 billion (RM4.43 billion).

“Yet, we do not expect GenM to declare special dividends,” it said in a note on Monday.

It was reported that GenM’s property in Miami, Florida had attracted five offers, with the highest bid being just under US$1.5 billion.

GenM reportedly plans to make a final decision in the coming weeks.

“Recall that GenM had invested US$500 million throughout May and September 2011 to acquire the aforesaid property. Note that the ringgit was trading at the 3.00 level against the US dollar then, versus 4.43 currently,” it noted.

Maybank IB maintained its earnings estimates, "buy" call, and RM2.97 target price for GenM pending the finalisation of the property sale.