PSC Corp has maintained its earnings for FY2022 over FY2021. For the year ended Dec 31 2022, the company reported earnings of $19.5 million, versus $19.6 million recorded over the year earlier.

 

Revenue was up 3.7% to $553 million, with higher sales from its consumer business in Singapore and Malaysia. On the other hand, its packaging business, via its separately listed subsidiary Tat Seng, was down.

 

The company plans to pay a final dividend of a cent per share, which, will bring full year payout to 1.25 cents - versus 0.75 cent paid for FY2021.

 

&ldquo As we move into FY2023, the business environment will remain very challenging," says executive chairman Sam Goi.

 

" However, the group has strong fundamentals with robust net cash position and balance sheet. Going forward, we will continue to leverage on our strengths to grow the business and exercise caution when exploring sustainable growth opportunities," he adds.

 

PSC Corporation, on Oct 14, announced that it has agreed to terminate its proposed acquisition of Dean Fa Food Co.

 

The company says the sale and purchase agreement (SPA) it entered into with the shareholders of Dean Fa Food Co, Lee Wen-Chung, Lee Yi-Ming, Lee Wen-Yuan, Liu Hsiu-Yun, Huang Wen-Liang, Ang Teck Hock, Ang Bock Hwee and Yin Wen Xin (or the vendor shareholders) has been terminated.

 

The SPA, which was signed on June 6, stipulated that the consideration for the sale shares of Dean Fa Food Co came in at $95.15 million.

 

According to PSC Corporation, the termination came about as the closing conditions, including external approvals and corporate approvals, could not be completed.

 

As such, the company, Dean Fa Food Co, as well as the latter&rsquo s shareholders have mutually agreed to terminate the SPA.

 

Apart from the professional fees and other expenses related to the acquisition that were already incurred, the termination will have no financial material impact on PSC Corporation&rsquo s results for the FY2022 ending Dec 31.

Henry Chu Heng Hwee, CEO of PSC Corp, has resigned, citing his intention to " pursue other career opportunities." Chu' s his last day at the company will be Dec 18.

 

Chu was appointed to the role on May 10 last year, after tycoon Sam Goi assumed control of the PSC Corp after a boardroom tussle and changed his role from non-executive chairman to executive chairman.

 

PSC Corp was the company' s original name. It was renamed Hanwell Holdings and the name was changed back to PSC Corp. Its business includes manufacturing and distribution of consumer staples. Its product portfolio includes the Fortune brand of tofus and the Beautex brand of tissue papers.

 

Between July 2017 and Dec 2019, Chu was the group CEO at BreadTalk Group, the famed F& B chain founded by George Quek, who holds the title executive chairman. Not long after Chu left for " personal and health reasons" , Breadtalk was privatised by Quek.

PSC Corporation has reported earnings of $12.7 million for the 1HFY2022 ended June, 41.9% higher than earnings of $8.9 million.

 

The earnings surge was attributable to the higher other income, which rose by more than three folds to $4.7 million due to a one-time gain on de-consolidation of subsidiaries, which amounted to $3.5 million. The surge was partly offset by a reduction of amortization of deferred income in the 1HFY2022.

 

Without the one-time gain, the group&rsquo s earnings would have increased by 2.7% y-o-y.

 

Revenue for the 1HFY2022 increased by 9.1% y-o-y to $281.4 million due to higher sales volume and selling prices from the group&rsquo s consumer business in Singapore and Malaysia and partly offset by the lower revenue from its 64%-owned subsidiary Tat Seng Group. In the six-month period, Tat Seng reported a reduction in total sales volume due to the tightened Covid-19 curbs in China.

 

Gross profit increased by 3.5% y-o-y to $59.5 million in line with the higher revenue. Gross profit margin (GPM), however, fell by 1.2 percentage points to 21.1% in the 1HFY2022.

 

Earnings per share (EPS) for the period stood at 2.29 cents, while PSC&rsquo s net asset value (NAV) per share stood at 56.62 cents per share.

 

An interim dividend of 0.25 cent per share has been proposed, which will be paid out on Aug 31.

 

Cash and cash equivalents stood at $164.6 million as at June 30.

 

Executive chairman Dr Sam Goi says, &ldquo We are pleased that our consumer business has posted a 29% surge in sales in Singapore and Malaysia, thanks to the lifting of Covid-19 measure in the region, the reopening of travel between the two countries and the addition of CKH Food Trading into our group, which boosted our performance.&rdquo

 

&ldquo Our packaging business was affected by supply chain disruptions and the new wave of infections in China,&rdquo he adds.

 

&ldquo Moving into the second half of FY2022, we envisage that business conditions will remain challenging even as the Russia-Ukraine conflict and other external factors continue to drive inflationary pressures on all fronts which will affect our margin,&rdquo says CEO Henry Chu.

 

&ldquo Notwithstanding, the group is on a robust footing with a positive net cash position and a healthy balance sheet. Going forward, we will leverage on our strengths to grow the business and exercise caution when exploring sustainable growth opportunities.&rdquo