KUALA LUMPUR (May 15): Hume Cement Industries Bhd (KL:HUMEIND) has sustained its earnings momentum with another record net profit for its third quarter ended March 31, 2024 (3QFY2024) on the back of lower manufacturing costs, and higher cement price and sales volume.

Net profit for the quarter more than doubled to RM61.07 million from RM27.01 million a year earlier, while revenue increased 7.4% to RM310.4 million from RM289 million, the group's bourse filing showed.

This is the cement manufacturer's best quarterly net profit since 3QFY2003, when the group posted RM190.6 million following the disposal of a business.

This also marks the group's sixth consecutive quarter of earnings growth, exceeding its preceding quarter's net profit of RM59.06 million.

Hume Cement declared a second interim dividend of six sen per share, bringing the total dividend year to date to eight sen per share. The group did not declare any dividend for FY2023.

Looking ahead, the group expects to perform well for the rest of FY2024 as the construction sector in Malaysia is anticipated to sustain its momentum.

For the first nine months of FY2024, Hume Cement’s total net profit saw an eight-fold increase to RM168.45 million, from RM19.44 million in the previous year’s corresponding period, due to higher cement average selling price, higher sales volume and lower input costs. Nine-month revenue jumped 25% to RM939.31 million from RM751.05 million.

Shares of Hume Cement closed up five sen or 1.58% to RM3.22 on Wednesday, valuing the group at RM2.02 billion. The counter has climbed as much as 41.2% since the start of the year.

The surge in the counter is in line with the uptrend in Bursa Malaysia’s sectoral indices. Year to date, the industrial products and services sector increased 11.2%, while the construction sector rose 19.2%.