THE 19th annual general meeting of PBA Holdings Berhad (PBAHB) has greenlighted a single tier final dividend of 1.75 sen per share for the financial year 2018.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, who is also the PBAHB chairman, said with the approval, PBAHB would be paying out RM5.79 million to 8,328 shareholders.
The company had paid a first interim dividend of 1.75 sen per share on Jan 11 this year. As such, the total dividend paid and declared by PBAHB for the financial year 2018 amounts to 3.5 sen per share.
“PBAHB was listed in the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia in 2002 and has been paying out dividends since then. This year marks the 18th consecutive year in which PBAHB has rewarded shareholders with dividends,” Chow told a press conference at Hotel Jen today.
Chow said PBAHB recorded a profit before tax of RM36.137 million last year (2018), as compared with RM40.936 million in 2017.
“Although the company’s revenue grew by 7.17% year-on-year, its cost of sales increased by 5.74% and the administrative expenses went up by 17.34%.”
PBAHB recorded RM334.758 million in revenue last year, as compared with RM312.353 million in 2017.
However, the cost of sales rose from RM225.754 million in 2017 to RM238.716 million last year (2018).
The administrative expenses also went up from RM70.763 million in 2017 to RM83.030 million last year (2018).
Chow said that PHAHB’s revenue was primarily generated from the sale of potable water in Penang by its principal subsidiary, Penang Water Supply Corporation (PBAPP).
“PBAPP incurred a domestic tariff subsidy of RM71.74 million last year (2018) to sustain the lowest domestic tariff in Malaysia. Without this subsidy, PBAHB’s profit for 2018 would have been significantly higher.
“PBAPP billed the lowest domestic water tariff in Malaysia last year (2018), at an average of RM0.32 per 1,000 litres for the first 35,000 litres per month, as compared with the national average of RM0.69 per 1,000 litres in 2017.
“Moreover, Penang’s average trade water tariff for the first 500,000 litres per month in 2018 was RM1.36 per 1,000 litres, as compared with the national average of RM1.74 per 1,000 litres in 2017,” Chow said.
He said PBAHB held cash and cash equivalents valued at RM182.48 million while its retained profits amounted to RM368.31 million as of Dec 31 last year.
Chow added that PBAPP provided continuous good water supply services to 1.77 million people and thousands of businesses on a 24/7 basis last year (2018) with no incidences of water rationing.
Story by Christopher Tan
Pix by Adleena Rahayu Ahmad Radzi
Video by Alissala Thian