KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 26): Hong Leong Industries Bhd’s (HLI) (KL:HLIND) net profit for its fourth financial quarter ended June 30, 2024 (4QFY2024) rose 41.9% to RM98.33 million from RM69.29 million a year ago, thanks to higher sales of motorcycles and improved performance of its associated company.

Earnings per share increased to 31.24 sen from 22.02 sen, the group said in a bourse filing.

Revenue for the quarter inched up 1% to RM773.66 million from RM767 million in 4QFY2023, with the higher motorcycle sales offset by the absence of revenue from the fibre cement board business which the group disposed of in November 2023.

No dividend was declared for the quarter. Hong Leong Industries had declared total dividend payouts of RM1.07 per share in the previous three quarters of the financial year.

For the full year, the group said net profit rose 33.5% to RM387.89 million from RM290.61 million in FY2023, underpinned by favourable sales mix that led to better profit margin, a RM25 million insurance compensation related to flood damages in FY2022 as well as an RM18.7 million disposal gain in the fibre cement board business.

Full-year revenue fell 8.9% year-on-year to RM3.11 billion from RM3.42 billion, amid the slowdown in the motorcycle business in the first three quarters of the financial year.

On prospects, Hong Leong Industries said demand for motorcycles has shown signs of improvement which bodes well for FY2025.

The group added that it has committed to building a new plant for its tiles business, with production expected to begin in 2026.

Hong Leong Industries shares closed unchanged at RM11.24, giving the group a market value of RM3.69 billion. Year-to-date, the stock is up 32.2%. Stripping off special dividend, the stock has an indicative dividend yield of 5.1%.