KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 23): Home improvement retailer MR DIY Group (M) Bhd’s net profit increased 16.6% in the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2023 (4QFY2023) from a year earlier, thanks largely to the expiry of a one-off corporate windfall tax.

Net profit for the three months ended Dec 31, 2023 was RM158.6 million or 1.68 sen per share, compared to RM136.1 million or 1.44 sen per share over the same period a year ago, MR DIY said in an exchange filing. Revenue for the quarter rose 7.6% year-on-year to RM1.15 billion as higher number of stores boosted sales volume.

“We are confident of our prospects going forward, driven by the demand for everyday essentials at consistent value especially in this period of persistent inflation and the rising cost of living,” said chief executive officer Adrian Ong.

This year, the company plans to open 180 new stores and have more than 2,000 total stores by 2028, he added. The company had 1,255 stores at the end of FY2023.

Gross profit margin for 4QFY2023 rose 2.1 percentage-points year-on-year to 45.8%, mainly due to lower freight costs as well as price adjustments carried out in FY2022.

MR DIY declared an interim dividend of one sen per share, compared with 0.6 sen paid a year ago, payable on March 22. This brings the total dividend for FY2023 to 3.2 sen, compared with 2.4 sen for FY2022.

For FY2023 as a whole, MR DIY's net profit climbed 18.5% to RM560.7 million from RM472.9 million in FY2022. Full-year revenue rose 9.4% to RM4.36 billion from RM3.98 billion.

Shares in MR DIY closed up one sen or 0.66% to RM1.53 on Friday, valuing the group at RM14.45 billion.