Marco Polo Marine H1 profit falls 61% to S$4.2 million
Tessa Oh
MARCO Polo Marine posted a 60.7 per cent drop in net profit to S$4.2 million for the first half ended Mar 31, 2023, from S$10.8 million the year before.
This comes as revenue for the period more than doubled to S$55.9 million, from S$27.6 million a year earlier, as both the group’s ship chartering and shipbuilding and repair operations improved from the previous year, the integrated marine logistics company said in a regulatory filing on Thursday (May 11).
Earnings per share stood at 0.16 Singapore cent for the first half, down from 0.30 cent the previous year.
No dividend was declared for the half year, unchanged from the year before. This was decided after taking into consideration the capital expenditure requirements of the group and the need to conserve cash for working capital, said the company in its results filing.
Cost of sales grew 96.5 per cent to S$38.2 million, from S$19.5 million in the preceding year-ago period.
The group’s other operating income fell to S$2.2 million, from S$10.7 million, due primarily to the decrease in gains from non-recurring items.
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The group’s administrative expenses for the half year also increased to S$5.6 million, from S$4.4 million previously, mainly due to a rise in staff costs. Meanwhile, operating expenses rose to S$7.5 million, from S$3 million the previous year, due to an increase in foreign exchange loss.
In the near term, the group remains focused on expanding its footprint in the renewable energy and offshore wind farm sectors.
For its ship chartering business, it will continue its support to the Taiwan offshore wind farm market, after having established its presence via its joint venture, Oceanic Crown Offshore Marine Services, and the completion of its acquisition of PKR Offshore.
For its shipyard division, the group will “continue to focus on securing ship repair and maintenance orders by expanding its customer base internationally”. It has also stepped up its marketing efforts on the shipbuilding front by actively engaging local ship owners in Indonesia.
Shares of Marco Polo Marine closed S$0.001 or 2.2 per cent lower at S$0.045 on Thursday, before the results were released.
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