KUALA LUMPUR: Public Investment Bank Berhad (PublicInvest Research) is optimistic about I-Berhad's future prospects.
The firm noted that there is substantial potential for long-term growth, with about 50 per cent of the developer's gross development value, amounting to RM5 billion, yet to be realised.
According to PublicInvest Research, I-Berhad's management is focused on expanding and enhancing its property investment and leisure/hospitality portfolios, which are anticipated to positively impact its property development pipeline.
The firm also highlighted that, depending on market conditions, the group is prepared to launch the AI Central Park project, which includes two corporate towers and one residential tower with a total gross development value of RM600 million.
PublicInvest Research has maintained its trading buy rating with a target price of 32 sen, which reflects a 50 per cent discount to book value compared to the industry average of 40 per cent.
Last week, I-Berhad reported a net profit of RM5.4 million for the second quarter of fiscal year 2024 (2QFY24), marking a 199.7 per cent increase year-on-year (YoY) and a 33.8 per cent rise quarter-on-quarter (QoQ).
This brought the net profit for the first half of 2024 (1HFY24) to RM9.5 million, up 281.8 per cent YoY, which is in line with the firm's expectations at 49 per cent of the full-year estimates.
PublicInvest Research noted that while the leisure and hospitality segment has been a key driver of revenue and profit growth, this quarter also saw improved contributions from the property development segment, although there were still limited new launches.
The group continues to invest in its leisure-related portfolio to sustain earnings momentum, recently introducing SkyCity Tower, Malaysia's tallest glass water slide at 60 metres.
I-Berhad indicated during the ground breaking last week that the addition of this new attraction in i-City, along with the DoubleTree by Hilton opened last year and other existing attractions, is expected to accelerate business and leisure activities in Shah Alam and continue attracting both local and international visitors.
SkyCity is set to open on Dec 11 this year, coinciding with the birthday of the Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah.
Tengku Datuk Seri Ahmad Shah Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah, chairman of i-City Selangor, said that the new attraction, along with i-City's existing tourism offerings, is expected to play a pivotal role in the success of Visit Selangor 2025.
The i-City development aims to attract about five million local and international tourists next year, accounting for 70 per cent of the state government's goal of seven million tourists.