KUALA LUMPUR (May 15): Information and communications technology (ICT) products distributor Vstecs Bhd (KL:VSTECS) said its first quarter net profit dipped 3.54% to RM14.32 million from RM14.85 million a year earlier, dragged by higher operating expenses.

Earnings per share for the quarter ended March 31, 2024 (1QFY2024) slipped to 4 sen from 4.2 sen, the group's bourse filing showed.

Quarterly revenue dropped 7.28% to RM616.36 million from RM664.74 million in 1QFY2023 which the group attributed o a lack of project deals from its enterprise systems segment amid the festive seasons.

On a quarter-on-quarter basis, Vstecs’ net profit declined 40.82% from RM24.2 million in 4QFY2023 while revenue fell 23.65% from RM807.25 million, on lower sales from the ICT distribution and enterprise systems segments.

Despite the subdued performance, Vstecs chief executive officer JH Soong said the group is satisfied with the results and looks forward to the coming quarters with optimism for all its business segments.

“We are excited on the new consumer and enterprise products to be launched this year, and we are optimistic of 2Q and the balance of 2024,” the group said.

Vstecs also expects to see increased momentum in its ICT distribution segment as the replacement cycle for pandemic-era devices gains traction, particularly with the impending launch of AI-capable notebooks driving additional demand.

Vstecs, whose share price hit a new all-time high on May 9 after it was appointed as Malaysia’s first distributor of Amazon Web Services, closed down three sen or 0.89% at RM3.35 on Wednesday, valuing the group at RM1.21 billion.