Sanli posts 28% drop in FY19 earnings to $2.2 mil on lower revenue; declares 0.25 cent final dividend

SINGAPORE (May 23): Environmental engineering company Sanli Environmental saw its full year earnings fall 27.7% to $2.2 million for the FY19 ended March, from $3.1 million a year ago.

Earnings per share (EPS) fell to 0.83 cents for FY19, compared to 1.19 cents for FY18.

FY19 revenue slipped 5.6% to $71.4 million, from $75.6 million a year ago.

The decline was mainly attributed to the decrease in contribution from the group’s Operations and Maintenance segment, which saw turnover decrease by 30.6% due to increased competition.

Gross profit dropped to $9.8 million for FY19, some 10.2% lower than $10.9 million a year ago, as gross profit margin dipped 0.7 percentage points to 13.7% in FY19.

Administrative expenses rose 16.9% to $6.1 million in FY19, from $5.2 million a year ago.

This was mainly due to the increase in employees’ remuneration resulting from an increase in salaries and headcount for the group’s business development department, as well as additional professional fees, advertising, exhibition, travelling and office expenses incurred in relation to the group’s expansion into Myanmar.

Other operating expenses fell 42.1% to $1.1 million, mainly due to the absence of one-off IPO expenses of $1.2 million in FY18.

As at end March, cash and cash equivalents stood at $8.8 million.

Sanli has declared a final dividend of 0.25 cent per share for FY19, the same as a year ago. This translates into a payout of 30.3% of its net profit attributable to shareholders.

“The operating environment has been challenging, with increased competition and labour costs. The team will press on, and leverage on our established track record and expertise to secure more contracts, whilst monitoring our operations at the same time, to ensure we maintain our competitive edge,” says Sanli CEO Sim Hock Heng.

Sim adds that Sanli will continue its efforts to grow the business in the region, following the team’s “very encouraging” progress in Myanmar.

Moving ahead, the group says it will rigorously monitor its operations to ensure that its service quality and competitive edge in public sector projects is maintained and continuously enhanced.

It adds that it will also continue to undertake careful and comprehensive evaluation of areas for potential future growth.

Shares in Sanli closed 5.9% higher at 19.9 cents on Thursday, before the announcement of its FY19 results.