Stocks to watch: DBS, Singtel, Singhaiyi, Perennial, First Sponsor, RE&S, Neo Group, mm2 Asia

THE following companies saw new developments that may affect trading of their shares on Thursday:

DBS: Earnings for DBS reached a record high of S$1.19 billion for the fourth quarter, up 31 per cent from the previous year. Its total income grew 10 per cent to S$3.06 billion, marking the second straight quarter that it has stayed above the S$3 billion level, as net interest income rose 15 per cent to S$2.1 billion in line with higher Singapore-dollar interest rates.

Singtel: The telco's third-quarter net profit fell 9 per cent to S$890 million for the year ended Dec 31, the telco announced on Thursday before market open. This was mainly due to lower profits at subsidiaries Airtel, Telkomsel and Globe, as well as lower contribution from NetLink NBNTrust following the divestment of its majority stake in the company. Operating revenue was up 4 per cent to S$4.6 billion, with earnings before interest, taxes and amortisation (Ebita) up 6 per cent to S$1.29 billion for the third quarter.

Singhaiyi Group: The property developer on Wednesday posted a 12.8 per cent increase in net profit to S$1.4 million for its third quarter ended Dec 31, 2017, as revenue more than tripled to S$41.7 million. It said the surge in turnover arose mainly from the revenue recognised for its completed executive condominium (EC) project, The Vales, as well as sales of completed units from Vietnam Town in the US.

Perennial Real Estate: The integrated real estate and healthcare company saw its fourth-quarter net profit rise 7.9 per cent to S$27.6 million from S$25.6 million last year, largely driven by net fair value gains on the revaluation of investment properties held through its subsidiaries and joint ventures, it said on Thursday.

First Sponsor Group: Despite a big jump in revenue, the mainboard-listed company saw earnings fall 41.5 per cent to S$42.7 million for its fiscal fourth quarter from the year ago period. The property group, whose key shareholders are City Developments Limited and Tai Tak Estates Sdn Bhd, attributed the drop to the absence of a one-off gain of S$97.3 million arising from the partial Star of East River Project divestment in fiscal 2016's fourth quarter.

RE&S Holdings: The Japanese food and beverage group posted a net profit of S$1.1 million for the second quarter ended Dec 31, down 21.3 per cent from S$1.4 million a year ago. Excluding the one-off IPO (initial public offering) expenses of about S$1 million, the group recorded a net profit after tax of S$2.1 million for Q2 FY2018, or a 51.5 per cent increase compared to a year ago. This is its first results release since its listing on the Catalist board on Nov 22, 2017.

Neo Group: The food solutions provider posted a net profit of S$2.1 million for the third quarter ended Dec 31, up from S$125,000 previously, partly attributed to the absence of a one-off loss of about S$5.2 million for Q3 2016/17. Revenue, however, slipped 4.2 per cent to S$44.7 million compared to a year ago, mainly due to a fall in its Supplies and Trading business revenue.

mm2 Asia: It posted a net profit of S$6.4 million for the third quarter ended Dec 31, up 52.9 per cent from S$4.2 million a year ago. Revenue jumped to S$52.4 million, from S$18 million previously, attributable to its recent acquisitions of business assets from Lotus Fivestar Cinema and a subsidiary corporation, Cathay Cineplexes.