27 Aug 2013
SET-listed motorcycle leasing company Group Lease Public Company Limited (GL) has decided to pay 112 million baht interim dividends to shareholders or 11 satang per share, which represents a 61.7% payout from the 181.5 million baht net profits in the first half this year.
The interim dividend, approved at a special Board of Directors meeting today (August 27, 2013), came on the eve of an important announcement next week that the company will expand its motorcycle-leasing business in Cambodia to cover the financing of agricultural machineries which also offers huge growth potentials because of Cambodia’s agriculture-based economy.
GL chairman and chief executive Mitsuji Konoshita stated that the new agricultural-machinery financing business will be conducted under the auspices of a cooperation agreement with the top Japanese agricultural-machinery manufacturer which has been the market leader in Cambodia. GL has projected it would take over roughly half of the approximately 3.5 billion baht worth of this business.
GL Finance, GL’s wholly-owned subsidiary in Cambodia, has recently beefed up its motorcycle-leasing business by opening new Points of Sales (POSs) in Battambang and Ratanakiri and was targeting to go full steam for the remainder of the year. “The new agricultural-machinery financing business would significantly add to our revenue and profits from Cambodia,” Mr. Konoshita stated.
GL has earlier reported a 90.8 million baht net profit for the second quarter this year, or roughly the same as the first quarter. But Mr. Konoshita revealed that the Q2 profit would have been much stronger if the company had not booked a one-time charge for all the expenses in starting up the Cambodian business. The Q2 results also took into account the first significant consolidation of 16.2 million baht profits from GL’s overseas operations. Company executives expect overseas profits to continue rising in the future.
In filing with the Stock Exchange of Thailand today (August 27, 2013), the company has set Sept 12 as the Ex-D date for the interim dividend and Sept 16 as the Record date while payment will be made on Sept 25.
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