KUALA LUMPUR (June 29): Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd (KL:ASTRO) climbed as news of partnership with state-owned broadcaster spurred renewed interest in shares of the pay-television operator.
The stock opened at 6.5 sen and climbed to as high as 7.5 sen on Monday. But by market close, the counter had retreated to 6.5 sen, unchanged from its opening price. The stock was one of the most actively traded counters on Bursa Malaysia as nearly 59 million shares changed hands.
However, the renewed buying interest did not reflect the bearish consensus from analysts. Responding to a query by The Edge, an analyst covering the sector said that he sees muted demand from investors on the overall media sector.
“We have paused our coverage on the media sector due to lack of interest,” said the analyst.
There are no 'buy' calls on the stock. Both Kenanga Investment Bank and Hong Leong Investment Bank have 'hold' recommendations, while TA Securities has a 'sell' call on Astro. The 12-month average target price is six sen.
The agreement announced on June 26 will see RTM's TV1, TV2 and TV Okey channels continuing to be shown on Astro’s platform after July 1. RTM News, Sukan+ and RTM’s radio stations are also expected to be made available on Astro at a later date.
The agreement reverses RTM’s earlier decision to remove the three television channels from Astro’s satellite service from July 1 after negotiations over carriage fees failed to reach an agreement.
The stock has been on a downward spiral from its peak in 2014 that wiped out more than 90% of its market value to just RM313 million on Monday, based on its last price.
AskEdge data shows that Astro is trading at historical low valuations at six times its past earnings and just slightly above its net asset value.
Part of the trouble this year was also due to the loss of rights to air this year’s Fifa World Cup, ending a run of more than 20 years as a broadcaster of the tournament. RTM and Telekom Malaysia Bhd’s (KL:TM) Unifi TV are the official Malaysian broadcast partners for this edition.
For its first three months ended April 30, 2026, Astro’s net profit fell 88% to RM1.56 million from a year earlier, while revenue declined 6.2% to RM659.62 million, weighed by lower subscription income.
The company is also searching for a permanent chief executive officer after Euan Smith stepped down on June 8. Former CEO Henry Tan returned as interim group CEO on June 16, pending the appointment of a successor.