IPC (AZA) H2 2024 earnings summary

Executive summary

• FY2024 swung to profit as a $7.272m fair-value gain on NHJC preference shares offset weaker sales and China hospitality challenges.

• Japan hotel investment benefited from record tourism; Grand nest HOTEL Zhuhai faced economic weakness and new room supply, prompting renovations and cost controls.

Financial highlights

• Sales fell 29.4% YoY to S$2.235m; gross profit rose to S$0.870m from S$0.581m, mainly on lower property-sale costs.

• Profit before tax was S$6.070m and net profit S$6.065m, versus prior-year losses of S$0.454m and S$0.631m, respectively.

• Other gains, net, were S$7.434m, including a S$7.272m NHJC fair-value gain; EPS was 7.11 cents versus a 0.74-cent loss.

Outlook and guidance

• For 2025, NHJC outlook is positive, subject to no negative surprises, with a weak JPY and strong tourism growth cited as drivers.

• Zhuhai operations are being managed cautiously amid China’s economic uncertainty; priorities include cost control, renovation and marketing to improve occupancy.

• Priorities include monetising some China assets, improving cash position and seeking removal from the SGX watch list.