HAGL expects 1.6 per cent revenue drop in 2017

HÀ NỘI — Agriculture firm Hoàng Anh Gia Lai (HAGL) has predicted VNĐ6.33 trillion (US$281.5 million) in total revenue and VNĐ552 billion in pre-tax profit in 2017, the company announced at its annual shareholder meeting on June 30.

Compared to 2016’s performance, the total revenue mark would be 1.6 per cent lower, but pre-tax earnings would improve from a loss of VNĐ1.4 trillion in 2016.

Main sources of income in 2017 are likely to be fruit (dragon fruit, passion fruit and banana) (VNĐ2.6 trillion), rubber (VNĐ745 billion), cattle for slaughter (VNĐ1.24 trillion) and the real estate project HAGL Myanmar (VNĐ1.14 trillion).

Concerning HAGL Myanmar, HAGL chairman Đoàn Nguyên Đức said that the group would be willing to sell half of its stake in the project if any investors are interested in this asset.

HAGL is seeking partners to offload its stake in the hydropower plant Nậm Kông 3, and the group is proceeding to complete the sale of hydropower project Nậm Kông 2. Both projects are developed in Laos.

In the future, HAGL will increase its ownership in the subsidiaries to take control of its sub-business units.

HAGL also forecast its profit in the first half of 2017 reached VNĐ213 billion, equal to 40 per cent of the year’s plan and lower than expected figure as some of the sub units had not operated, thus contributing nothing to the firm’s earnings.

Đức said that the firm will try to fulfill its 2017 target during the second half by achieving 30 per cent of the targeted profit in each quarter.

In addition, the company has successfully reduced parts of its total loans by selling business units and converting bonds into shares to offset the burden in its financial health.

According to the group’s CEO Võ Trường Sơn, HAGL was able to reduce its total loans by VNĐ5 trillion after selling its sugar arm, HAGL Sugar JSC, to Thành Thành Công Group (TTC) in May and issuing 137.5 million shares at VNĐ8,000 per share to convert the VNĐ1.1 trillion worth of loan agreement made with the Singapore-based national wealth fund Temasek in 2010.

The 137.5 million shares issued for Temasek are forbidden from being traded within one year to keep HAGL’s share price stable, Đức said.

However, the group will not pay dividends for 2017’s performance. Shares of HAGL are listed on the HCM Stock Exchange with symbol HAG, closing yesterday down 4 per cent at VNĐ9,100 per share. — VNS