Guinness Anchor net profit for Q2 climbs to RM43.8m

GUINNESS Anchor Bhd (GAB) (3255) said its second quarter net profit rose 26.4 per cent to RM43.8 million, mainly due to higher sales from promotions.

Revenue for the country's biggest brewer was up 15.1 per cent to RM378.1 million for the period to December 31 2009.

"It was a strong quarter. We planned the year carefully thinking that 2010 will be more challenging. But the economy turned around quicker than any of the pundits had forecast," GAB managing director Charles Ireland said.

GAB is also ahead of its KPI (key performance indicators) target. The KPIs are to grow volume, profits and market share, Ireland said at a briefing in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, yesterday.
Ireland expects GAB to surpass 2009's net profit and revenue, led by its top four selling brands, Tiger, Guinness, Heineken and Anchor.

"We are dependent on the economic performance. The country's gross domestic product is a good barometer on how well we will do," Ireland said.

Its third quarter performance will be led by sales during the Chinese New Year (CNY) festival.

"The CNY festival is very significant for GAB and we expect our top brand, Tiger to sell quicker this year as it is the Year of the Tiger," he said.

Net profit and revenue for the six-month period ended December 30 2009 was RM70.6 million and RM679 million, respectively.

Ireland said GAB will launch new brands before the end of its current financial year.

Although GAB has been careful with its capital expenditure (capex) it has raised its budget for advertising and promotion.

It spends RM28 million to RM35 million a year on capex but reduced it to RM20 million this year. This is to add new machinery to its brewery.