Yeo Hiap Seng posts H1 net profit of S$3.3 million
Ry-Anne Lim
FOOD and beverage player Yeo Hiap Seng reported a net profit of S$3.3 million for the half year ended Jun 30, 2023, more than two times the earnings of S$1.2 million in the year-ago period.
This comes despite a dip in revenue to S$181.1 million, down 0.1 per cent from S$181.2 million a year ago, on the back of lower sales in Australia, China and Europe, said the group in a bourse filing on Friday (Aug 11).
Revenue from its core F&B business also dropped 4.5 per cent year on year to S$158.5 million due to foreign currency translation. Excluding this, the group’s core revenue would have remained “relatively unchanged” compared to the same period last year, it said.
These decreases were offset by the Singapore and Malaysia markets, which saw better performance year on year, Yeo Hiap Seng said.
Earnings per share stood at S$0.0055 for the half year, from S$0.002 in H1 FY2022.
Gross profit margin rose 1.7 percentage points to 32.5 per cent in H1, from 30.8 per cent last year, which the group attributed to its efforts in “driving net price increase and optimising its product portfolio”, offsetting the cost of inflation.
BT in your inbox
Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.
Meanwhile, administrative costs grew 20.6 per cent to S$20 million and finance costs surged 69.7 per cent to S$387,000.
No dividend was declared for the period under review. The group said it does not have a standing practice of declaring interim dividends, adding that it would be “prudent” to conserve cash, given the current market conditions.
Moving forward, Yeo Hiap Seng highlighted that the market might remain challenging, in the face of operating cost inflation and an expected slowdown in consumer spending amid rising macroeconomic uncertainties.
“(We) will continue to strive for cost optimisation to improve business performance by driving operational efficiency and commercial excellence across the entire value chain,” it said.
Shares of Yeo Hiap Seng closed at S$0.66 on Friday, up 1.5 per cent or S$0.01, prior to the results announcement.
Copyright SPH Media. All rights reserved.
