KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 7): A new substantial shareholder has emerged in MQ Technology Bhd via the acquisition of a 6.12% stake in the Penang-based industrial mould manufacturer.

In a bourse filing on Thursday, the group said Tai Tean Seng undertook the open-market acquisition of the stake, comprising 90 million shares, on Wednesday.

The price at which the shares were acquired was not disclosed, but based on the stock's closing price of three sen on Wednesday, the 6.12% stake would have cost Tai RM2.7 million.

Tai is also a substantial shareholder of Jiankun International Bhd, with a stake of 6.45% as on Feb 3.

MQ Technology, which makes moulds, tools, dies, jigs and fixtures used in the manufacturing of hard disk drives, posted a net loss of RM15.07 million for its financial year ended Sept 30, 2023 (FY2023), compared with a net profit of RM6.54 million in the previous year. Revenue dropped 58% to RM6.75 million from RM16.12 million. 

The group attributed the loss to higher operating expenses (which rose by more than threefold to RM13.78 million from RM4.55 million) and higher finance costs of RM9.54 million (up 13.13% from RM8.43 million). 

MQ Technology had returned to the black in FY2022 from a net loss of RM1.36 million in FY2021 primarily due to higher other income and fixed cost control. Revenue increased to RM16.11 million from RM10.65 million, driven by growth in its manufacturing division.

MQ Technology’s share price closed down 0.5 sen or 16.67% to 2.5 sen, giving the group a market capitalisation of RM37 million.