By TMR

KPJ Healthcare Bhd’s revenue grew 6% year-on-year (YoY) to RM822.9 million from RM779.2 million in its first quarter ended Mar 31, 2018 (1Q18).

Its net profit rose 11% YoY to RM42.5 million from RM38.3 million.

In a filing to Bursa Malaysia, it said the revenue for local division grew 6% to RM797.3 million from RM750.4 million posted a year ago.

“The higher revenue in Malaysia’s operation was mainly contributed by the increase in the number of patients and complex cases per inpatient, particularly for KPJ Rawang, which had a 45% increase in the number of beds to 128 beds compared to a year ago,” it said yesterday.

It added that double-digit growths recorded in the firm’s other four hospitals have significantly contributed to its higher revenue for the quarter under review.

“Other hospitals under the group that had recorded a double-digit growth include KPJ Tawakkal, KPJ Klang, KPJ Pasir Gudang and KPJ Bandar Maharani,” it said.

The group’s profit before zakat and tax for the first three months of 2018 rose 5% YoY to RM60.9 million from RM57.8 million.

Its total assets grew 12% to RM4.5 billion from RM4 billion posted a year ago, while its total liabilities rose 11% YoY to RM2.5 billion from RM2.3 billion.

Moving forward, the group will continue to improve its performance and enhance its business st rategies to ensure long-term growth and profitability.

It added that the numbers of outpatient and inpatient continue to grow within 3.6% to 5.3%, thus supporting its growth strategies that are already in place.

The group declared an interim single-tier dividend of 50 sen per share, payable on July 20, 2018. Earnings per share for the period was 96 sen, compared to 94 sen a year ago.