KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 26): WCE Holdings Bhd (KL:WCEHP), which operates and tolls the West Coast Expressway (WCE), recorded its fourth consecutive quarterly loss of RM46.5 million for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2024 (4QFY2024), compared to a net profit of RM159.5 million a year earlier.

The significant earnings contraction was mainly attributable to a one-off gain on the derecognition of investments in associates totalling RM208 million in the previous corresponding quarter, as stated in the toll concessionaire's bourse filing.

Quarterly revenue dropped by 24% to RM100 million, from RM131.1 million in 4QFY2023, on lower revenue from both the concession and construction segments, partly because of reduced construction activities.

For the full year ended March 31, 2024 (FY2024), the highway concessionaire reported a net loss of RM119.4 million, compared to a net profit of RM97.3 million in FY2023, mainly attributed to higher interest costs for completed sections of WCE and the absence of gains from the aforementioned divestment.

Nonetheless, revenue increased by 23% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM623.1 million in FY2024 from RM506.8 million last year, driven by higher construction activity and toll collection revenue, in line with the completion of an additional four sections of WCE.

Toll collection revenue in FY2024 went up 37% y-o-y to RM60.4 million from RM44.1 million. However, on a quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q) basis, net loss more than doubled from RM22.4 million, while revenue plunged by 43.7% from RM177.7 million.

Notably, WCE Holdings has turned a loss for the past four consecutive quarters.

On its prospects, WCE Holdings noted steady traffic growth on operational sections following the recent opening of Section 11 of WCE, spanning Beruas to Taiping Selatan, with a 37% increase in traffic volume from the preceding year in 4QFY2024.

"In 4QFY2024, the sectional average daily traffic saw a 53% increase compared to the same period in FY2023, with the Raya festive period in April 2024 witnessing a peak traffic volume of 350,000 sectional average daily traffic, a significant surge of 150% from the previous record set in December last year of 140,000 sectional average daily traffic," the group said.

Anticipating further traffic growth upon the completion and operation of Section 1 (Banting-South Klang Valley Expressway [SKVE]) and Section 2 (SKVE-Shah Alam Expressway [KESAS]), WCE Holdings also expects increased toll revenue from new sections to enhance its financial performance, improving cash flows and operating results.

"Once the entire alignment of WCE is fully operational, we expect a shift towards profitability as revenue growth outpaces interest costs," the group added.

Shares in WCE Holdings settled 1.5 sen higher at 85.5 sen on Thursday, giving the group a market capitalisation of RM2.55 billion.