Thai Listed Firms Show Upbeat Q3 Net Profit, Up 67 Pct From Q2

The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) reveals that third-quarter net profits of Thai listed companies rose 66.51 percent from the previous quarter thanks to higher performances of the resources and industrial goods groups, while other sectors showed flat earnings.
 
In the third quarter, overall sales rose 1.03 percent from the second quarter to THB 2.6 trillion (approx. USD 83.9 billion), while production costs dropped 0.89 percent, resulting in a 10.46 percent increase in gross profit margins to THB 480 billion. This was because higher inventory gains of resources and industrial goods following oil prices. In addition, the two groups were also aided by foreign exchange gains worth a total of THB 6.18 billion, a reverse from previous losses. Thus, in total, companies had a combined net profit of THB 216 billion in the July-October quarter, up 66.51 percent from the second quarter, the SET Note Quarterly Corporate Update shows.
 
There were 444 listed companies posting net profits in the third quarter, representing 82.22 percent of all listed firms. Of those making profits, 334 made higher net profits than from a previous quarter, representing 61.85 percent of the total.
 
In the first nine months of this year, overall listed companies reported an 11.81 percent rise of sales to THB 7.69 trillion, but their net profits rose only 0.59 percent from a year earlier to THB 560 billion, as their costs rose 13.81 percent.
 
All indicators used to gauge listed firms’ financial health rose in the third quarter from the previous quarter, supported by higher operating profits. However, their financial status showed higher risks due to an increasing debt to equity ratio, which rose to 1.36 times in the third quarter due to business expansion. Even at this higher level, this ratio was still stable, less than that of those experienced during the economic crisis in 1997-1998 and in 2008-2009.
 
Capital expenditures were THB 109.05 billion in the third quarter, rising from a year earlier and the previous quarter in terms of investment value and company amounts. For the first nine months, their capital expenditures were THB 329 billion, up 16.22 percent from the same period of last year.
 
In the first nine months, companies raised THB 81.54 billion, up 6.51 percent from a year earlier. Of this amount, 23.41 percent was raised through SET, up from 21.98 percent a year earlier. This was underpinned by rising fundraising from property funds and financial and service businesses. By quarter, they raised THB 20.86 billion, down 7.44 percent from the previous quarter.