IHH Healthcare's Q3 profit jumps 46%

IHH Healthcare Berhad reported a 46 per cent jump in net profit to RM173.3 million (S$56.3 million) in the third quarter ended Sept 30 on the back of higher revenue and a lower base effect.

While revenue grew 18 per cent to RM2.44 billion due to sustained organic growth at existing hospitals and contribution from new hospitals, the foreign exchange losses on Acibadem Holdings' non-Turkish lira borrowings narrowed significantly over the year.

Stripping out exceptional items, net profit would have eased by 2 per cent to RM217.6 million on increased depreciation from new hospitals and higher net financing costs arising from a larger asset base.

For the nine months ended Sept 30, revenue rose 20 per cent from a year ago to RM7.4 billion, while Ebitda grew by 12 per cent to RM1.7 billion. Net profit improved by 26 per cent to RM654.9 million, but would have slipped 6 per cent to RM643.5 million if exceptional items were stripped out.

"Our sustained growth performance reflects our focus on extracting operating leverage from existing operations, integrating newly acquired assets and rebalancing our portfolio to optimise returns," said IHH managing director and CEO Tan See Leng.

"We also continue to pave the way for long-term growth, and are excited about our strategic partnership with Taikang to accelerate our expansion into mainland China as well as the ramping up of our project pipeline, including the opening of Gleneagles Hong Kong next year."