This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on August 17, 2026 - August 23, 2026

Shareholders of PBA Holdings Bhd (KL:PBA) have much to cheer about, with the company’s share price more than doubling over the past three years against a backdrop of stronger earnings and consistent dividend payouts, which boosted investors’ returns.

Penang’s sole licensed water supply operator outperformed its peers in the telecommunications, media and utilities sector in terms of shareholders’ returns, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 22.69% over the three years under review.

The stock climbed above the RM1 threshold only in November 2023. Its share price rallied from 70.3 sen as at end-March 2023 to RM1.76 a year later, and hit a high of RM2.055 by end-March 2025.

It closed at RM1.84 on March 31, 2026 — the cut-off date for The Edge Centurion Club Awards 2026. It continued to rise as high as RM2.10 on June 8, before closing at RM1.98 on July 24 this year. At the closing price of RM1.98, the stock had a market capitalisation of RM656 million.

The strong share price performance was complemented by a steady increase in dividends, with payout rising from three sen per share in FY2022, to 3.5 sen in FY2023, 4.5 sen in FY2024 and five sen in FY2025.

For the three-year review period, shareholders of PBA enjoyed a 161.7%, or RM1.14, rise in share price plus dividends of 13 sen per share.

The state treated-water operator has an uninterrupted track record of rewarding shareholders with regular dividends since its incorporation in 2000.

Through its wholly-owned subsidiary Perbadanan Bekalan Air Pulau Pinang Sdn Bhd), PBA supplies treated water to more than 721,066 registered consumers in the state through 10 water treatment plants with a combined design capacity of 1,732 million litres per day (MLD). In 2025, it produced 1,208 MLD of treated water.

PBA’s sole reportable business segment is the abstraction of raw water, treatment and distribution of treated water to consumers in Penang.

The company’s net profit expanded to a record high of RM144.2 million for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2024 (FY2024) from RM34.3 million the year before, but eased to RM114.5 million in the following year. The CAGR of its profit after tax over the three-year period under review was an impressive 14.1%.

For the first quarter ended March 31, 2026 (1QFY2026), PBA’s net profit more than doubled to RM39.7 million from RM19.5 million a year earlier, as revenue rose 17% to RM145.6 million from RM124.3 million.

It attributes the stronger performance mainly to the higher value of pipe reticulation assets surrendered by developers at no cost to PBAPP, upon completion of development projects.

As at end-March 2026, PBA had cash and cash equivalents of RM543.3 million, compared with total loans and borrowings of RM317.2 million.

The company said it is still in talks over a long-term treated water supply project between Perak and Penang involving Perbadanan Kemajuan Negeri Perak and Gamuda Bhd (KL:GAMUDA). PBA has requested for an extension of the negotiations for the water supply agreement until Nov 4, 2026.

PBA expects revenue to increase in line with the rapid industrialisation in Penang and the increase in water tariffs starting July 1 this year, following the state government’s decision to defer a tariff adjustment by almost a year. Any water tariff hike would benefit PBA’s bottom line directly.

According to AskEdge data, the company is trading at a relatively low price-to-earnings ratio of 4.9 times, compared with peers such as Ranhill Utilities Bhd (KL:RANHILL) at 18.1 times and Taliworks Corp Bhd (KL:TALIWRK) at 7.7 times.

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