Oxley Holdings posts S$296.3m net loss for H2 despite gross profit quadrupling

PROPERTY developer Oxley Holdings recorded a net loss of S$296.3 million for the second half of the financial year ended June 30, on the back of other losses incurred due to the Covid-10 pandemic, it said in a statement after the market closed on Friday.

The H2 net loss was a sharp reversal from the S$62.5 million net profit in the year-ago period. It came despite revenue quadrupling to S$638.9 million, from a restated S$160.3 million in the year-ago period.

Oxley did not release standalone fourth quarter figures.

Gross profit for the second half also quadrupled to S$149.3 million, from a restated S$37 million in the year-ago period.

But other losses increased by S$310.4 million, which Oxley said was mainly attributable to the pandemic. These included a fair-value loss of S$48.7 million on investment properties in Singapore, and non-recurring losses of S$210.7 million.

The non-recurring losses included the disposal of its investment in an associated company, Galliard Group; a receivable of proceeds from the completion of the share sale of Oxley Beryl from "unfavourable circumstances due to Covid-19"; and unrealised foreign-exchange losses of S$23.7 million. The Oxley Beryl share sale generated a S$130 million profit.

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Excluding these losses, the full-year net profit would have been S$13.1 million, said Oxley.

Loss per share for the second half was 7.02 Singapore cents, compared with earnings per share of 1.51 Singapore cents in the year-ago period.

Oxley has recommended a final dividend of 1.5 Singapore cents per share, compared with one of 0.68 Singapore cent per share in the year-ago period. Together with the interim dividend of 0.32 Singapore cents paid in March, the full-year dividend is 1.82 Singapore cents.

The latest results take Oxley's full-year net loss to S$280.6 million, compared with full-year net profit of S$96.8 million the year before.

Full-year revenue was S$1.23 billion, up 80 per cent from a restated S$686.1 million the year before.

In the second half of the financial year, Oxley's operations were hampered by lockdowns due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with construction expected to be delayed by four to six months for development projects in Singapore, Ireland, and Malaysia.

But Oxley added: "Since the lifting of the 'circuit-breaker' restrictions, all the group's construction sites in Singapore have gradually returned to full operation, and the group can look to higher revenue, profit recognition as well as progressive billings of the sold units in the new financial year."