KUALA LUMPUR: CTOS Digital Bhd's net profit jumped 62.3 per cent to RM12.48 million in the first quarter (Q1) ended March 31, 2022 from RM7.69 million last year.
In a statement on Friday, the company said this was achieved on the back of stronger revenue on improved performance across all business segments.
Group revenue in the same quarter rose 12.4 per cent to RM42.7 million from RM38 million.
CTOS said share of profits of associates increased by 45.8 per cent to RM2.4 million, contributed by Juris Technologies Sdn Bhd (JurisTech) which was acquired in March 2022 and higher profit from Business Online Public Company Ltd (BOL), the leading commercial credit information and risk management provider in Thailand.
CTOS currently holds a 49 per cent stake in JurisTech and 24.83 per cent in BOL.
CTOS deputy group chief executive officer Erick Hamburger said the company had delivered a strong set of financial results in Q1 FY22 despite the lingering impact from the pandemic.
"Momentum is expected to ramp up as the year progresses. The recently conducted RAM-CTOS Business Confidence Index (BCI) Survey points to positive domestic business sentiments with the re-opening of the economy.
"We are also seeing increased activities with our subscribers pulling 17 per cent more business credit reports since the start of 2022 compared to the same period last year," he said.
Hamburger said the company was confident of delivering solid performance in 2022 supported by BAU growth, expansion into new verticals and reaping the harvest from our value accretive acquisitions.
Meanwhile, he said CTOS was still in an acquisition mode and would continue to look for opportunities within the Asean region as well as within Malaysia to create additional value.
"With our cash position of RM42.4 million and low net gearing, we have the flexibility to fund more acquisitions," he added.
CTOS declared a first interim single-tier dividend of 0.325 sen per ordinary share in respect of the three months financial period ending March 31, 2022 to be paid on June 10.
The total payout amounts to RM7.5 million, representing a payout ratio of 60.2 per cent.