Crane rental firm Tat Hong Holdings sank deeper into the red in the fourth quarter after it posted a S$39.8 million loss as revenues slid, impairment charges were announced and weakness in the construction sector continued/
Revenue slid 7 per cent year-on-year to S$126.72 million over the same period.
Tat Hong incurred a loss per share of 6.34 Singapore cents for the quarter, compared with a loss per share of 2.71 Singapore cents the previous year.
Net asset value per share fell to S$0.93 as at March 31 this year, down from S$1.03 as at March 31 last year.
The group did not declare a dividend. It had declared a final dividend of S$0.01 the previous year.
Tat Hong shares lost S$0.015 to close at S$0.52 on Friday before its results were released.
in Q4, the firm’s tower crane rental segment was the only division that saw positive YoY sales growth of 4%, as well as raised gross profit margin of 37.7%. This was bolstered by improved utilization rates due to new projects commenced. On top of this, the quarter saw lower depreciation and crane operator expenses.
Moving forward, Tat Hong sees sustained weakness in demand in most of its markets.
“The tepid outlook for the industry will likely continue to weigh on earnings recovery, while the group’s share price may be supported to some extent for now in view of a possible transaction that may or may not lead to an acquisition of its issued share capital,” OCBC BANK reports.
“Meanwhile, we expect further scaling down of noncore, unprofitable businesses among other measures to improve their operating performance,” adds OCBC BANK.
