Stock Of The Week : Protasco Bhd

INFRASTRUCTURE development provider firm Protasco Bhd reported a 194% jump in its net profit to RM18mil for its recent quarter with its revenue also higher at RM206.6mil against RM175.5mil earlier.

It also declared a special plus interim dividend of 10 sen per share.

The better performance was a result of higher revenue from its construction contracts segment and improved operating margins particularly in its construction contracts segment, the company said.

For the nine months to Sept 30, Protasco made a net profit of RM30.73mil on RM484.03mil in sales.

This compares with a net profit of RM19.5mil on sales of RM450.4mil a year earlier.

As at Sept 30, the company had some RM41mil in cash and bank balances.

Protasco announced a slew of board changes this week including the emergence of a new substantial shareholder, Kingdom Seekers Ventures Sdn Bhd.

One of the directors of Kingdom is Tey Por Yee who is the boss of mobile application service provider Nextnation Communications Bhd which is listed on the ACE market.

Sources say among other changes, Protasco is expected to see an injection of assets soon.

The stock surged a shade above its recent one-year high of RM1.04 this week, climbing steadily from below RM1.

At the close yesterday, Protasco finished at RM1.03

By YVONNE TAN, thestar.com.my

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