KUALA LUMPUR (March 27): Sports Toto Bhd (SPToto) said on Wednesday that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Magna Mahsuri Sdn Bhd, has acquired a 1.34% equity interest in Berjaya Food Bhd for RM13.21 million, resulting in its shareholding in the group increasing to 1.77%.

In a bourse filing, SPToto stated that the acquisition was carried out between March 25 and March 27 from the open market via direct business transactions, at an average purchase price of 55.5 sen per BFood share.

According to SPToto, the cash consideration for the acquisitions was determined based on the prevailing market prices of BFood's shares at the time of acquisition.

“The acquisitions were financed through the internal funds of the SPToto Group, and there is no liability to be assumed arising from the acquisitions,” it said.

SPToto added that the acquisition is not expected to have a material effect on the net assets, earnings, or gearing of the SPToto Group for the financial year ending June 30, 2024.

Berjaya Corp Bhd, founded by Tan Sri Vincent Tan, is the largest shareholder of BFood, which in turn, is the largest shareholder of SPToto.

Last month, SPToto reported that its net profit shrank by 63% in the second quarter from a year earlier, due to lower sales in both its number forecast operating segment and luxury car businesses, as well as higher operating costs.

Net profit for the three months ended Dec 31, 2023 (2QFY2024), was RM24.22 million compared with RM64.86 million over the same period a year earlier (2QFY2023). Revenue for the quarter slipped 2.85% year-on-year to RM1.37 billion from RM1.41 billion.

Shares in Sports Toto ended unchanged at RM1.39 on Bursa Malaysia on Wednesday, giving the group a market capitalisation of RM1.88 billion.