Keppel Corporation 3Q FY 2016 Result Quick Summary

Keppel Corporation posted their 3Q FY 2016 earning report in summary below. 3Q earnings decline 38% to $225 million from $363 million a year ago. Keppel said the higher contribution from its property division at 55% helped to partially offset lower profits from Offshore & Marine division at 26%. This is due to the lower volume of work, deferment of some projects and the suspension of Sete Brasil contracts.

• Net Profit fall of 38% for 3Q 2016 to $225 million
• Earnings Per Share was 35.3 cents, down 43% from 9M 2015's 61.7 cents
• Annualised Return on Equity of 7.6%
• Economic Value Added decreased to $39 million from $456 million
• Cash inflow of $552 million, compared to cash outflow of $784 million a year ago
• Net gearing was 0.57x

Keppel Corporation faces a challenging environment on

• Slow global growth
• Continuing challenges in offshore sector despite gradual recovery in oil price
• Resilient urbanisation trends in Asia

Although there is a gradual recovery in oil prices from the February 2016's low of US$27 per barrel to the recent US$50 per barrel, offshore & marine division is still far from full recovery. Keppel Corporation had been looking to grow their LNG business to complement the loss in profits from their offshore & marine division. They see a promising future for the LNG market over the long term.

The only good news for 3Q result is the cash inflow of $552 million in this quarter as compared to cash outflow of $306 million for 1Q and $262 million for 2Q. This was due mainly on the reduction in the working capital requirements. They had been laying off close to 8000 or 26% of their workforce for the first 9 months of the year.

The Group will continue to execute and focus on its multi-business strategy, they will remain poised for new opportunities to deliver sustainable value for their customers and shareholders in the long run.