KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): Construction outfit and bus operator Epicon Bhd will exit Practice Note 17 (PN17) status on Friday following the completion of its regularisation plan.
Epicon has regularised its financial condition and no longer triggers any criteria under Paragraph 2.1 of PN17 of the Bursa Malaysia Main Market Listing Requirements, the stock exchange regulator said in a statement.
The group slipped into PN17 status in April 2020 after the group’s auditor Al Jafree Salihin Kuzaimi Plt flagged its current liabilities, which exceeded current assets by RM63 million in audited financial statements for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2018 (FY2018).
As part of the regularisation plan, Epicon divested its express bus business Park May Bhd and its subsidiaries, known as PMB Group, for RM1 plus a debt waiver of RM51.46 million.
Park May was sold to Nadicorp, linked to Tan Sri Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh, who was formerly a substantial shareholder in Epicon when it was still named Konsortium Transnasional.
The exercise, which was completed in August 2023, resulted in a net gain of RM18.63 million, according to the group’s annual report.
Epicon also ventured into construction as part of its regularisation plan, focusing on affordable residential housing and commercial properties. It is now the main contributor to the group’s earnings, representing 74.5% of its RM150.15 million revenue in FY2023.
The remaining 25.5% is contributed by its transportation business, with a fleet of 92 stage buses covering 27 routes in Seremban under the Cityliner brand.
In FY2023, Epicon turned a net profit of RM68.21 million, from a net loss of RM11.26 million the previous year, thanks to its construction business and the one-off gain from the debt waiver and disposal of PMB Group.
It was the group’s first annual profit following consecutive periods of losses since FY2016.
Full-year revenue surged 98.4% to RM150.15 million from RM75.68 million previously.
Epicon’s largest shareholder is Doh Properties Sdn Bhd — a private vehicle of Lagenda Properties Bhd’s former chairman Datuk Doh Tee Leong — holding an 11.26% stake.
He emerged as the group’s substantial shareholder after acquiring a 14.26% stake in the company through a private placement exercise in December 2021.
At Thursday’s closing, Epicon rose one sen or 2.17% to 47 sen, giving the group a market capitalisation of RM279.55 million. The counter has risen over 11% since the start of this year.