KPJ Healthcare Berhad

KPJ a sound choice for long term investment

Borneo Post Sarawak

KUCHING: KPJHealthcare Bhd (KPJ Healthcare), the leading private healthcare provider in Malaysia is a good choice for long term investments and portfolio balancing offering growth potential in a defensive sector. Despite a low first quarter financial year 2011 (1~FY11) net profit of RM27.5 million, its results were in line with analysts’forecastsofaround 21 per cent as the first quarter (1Q) was typically the weakest quarter, as noted by OSK Research Sdn Bhd (OSK Research). Analysts at the research firm attributed this to seasonal factors like the Chinese New Year OSI( Research hospitals that contributed to higher revenue growth are mostly the new hospitals such as Penang Specialist, Tawakal Specialist, Kuching Specialist and Perdna where their margins have yet to reach the group’s normal margin line" said OSK Research. The research firm further added that KPJ’s new hosofKPJ’swarrantsinJaary 2010, around 37.4 mihiph or 28.3 per cent of the wai~ants had been converted to KPJ shares so far. Subseqi~ently KPJ’s shares increased from ~28.9 million shares to 566.3 million shares. "After taking into account the enlarged shares base and unchanged earnings forecasts, our financial year