KUALA LUMPUR (May 28): Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd’s (KL:HLFG) net profit fell 12.7% to RM714.12 million for the third quarter ended March 31, 2025 (3QFY2025), from RM818.07 million a year ago, with lower contributions across all operating divisions.
Quarterly revenue fell 3.4% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM1.7 billion, compared with RM1.76 billion previously, according to its bourse filing. No dividends were declared for the quarter.
During the quarter under review, its commercial banking arm Hong Leong Bank Bhd’s (KL:HLBANK) pre-tax profit dipped 0.5% to RM1.26 billion, impacted by one-off dilution losses of RM407.6 million from two China-based associate companies, despite a 10.3% rise in operating profit.
The group's insurance arm, HLA Holding Sdn Bhd's pre-tax profit plunged 64.1% to RM93.3 million, hit by lower investment income, smaller mark-to-market gains, and reduced profit from associate MSIG Insurance.
Its investment banking and asset management arm Hong Leong Capital’s (KL:HLCAP) pre-tax profit fell 43.5% to RM15.3 million, mainly due to lower gains from equity investments and weaker stockbroking performance, partly from ongoing spending on customer growth and digital upgrades.
Weaker performance in Malaysian equities also contributed to the group’s overall decline, the group said in its bourse filing. The benchmark FBM KLCI has fallen 5% year-to-date compared with 10% for the same period in the year before.
For the first nine months of FY2025, HLFG posted a slight 0.4% increase in net profit to RM2.4 billion, supported by strong commercial banking performance. Total revenue rose 8.2% to RM5.45 billion, despite weaker results from life insurance and investment banking.
On prospects, HLFG’s president and CEO Tan Kong Khoon said it is focusing on business growth through innovation and global partnerships.
Examples of this include Hong Leong Bank’s partnership with Swiss private bank Lombard Odier to enhance private banking and wealth management services, and the group’s life insurance arm “Future-Secured" policy, the first policy in the market with medical drawdown features.
HLFG is also using its wide sales network and product range to boost cross-selling. It plans to roll out foreign-denominated funds through its ecosystem, following strong results from its bancassurance sales.
At the time of writing on Wednesday, HLFG shares were unchanged at RM16.70, valuing the group at RM19.16 billion. Year-to-date, the stock has fallen 9.7%.