ASTRO MALAYSIA FY2024 NET PROFIT FALLS TO RM36.88 MLN

KUALA LUMPUR, March 21 (Bernama) -- Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd’s net profit for the financial year ended Jan 31, 2024 (FY2024) slipped to RM36.88 million from RM256.04 million in the last financial year.

Revenue slipped to RM3.34 billion from RM3.62 billion previously.

For the fourth quarter (4Q), Astro’s net profit fell to RM44.38 million from RM54.75 million in the same quarter last year. 

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Revenue, meanwhile, declined to RM819.85 million from RM949.26 million previously.

In a statement today, Astro said amid ongoing macroeconomic headwinds and foreign currency volatility, its 4Q FY2024 revenue was resilient. 

The group noted that it generated free cash flows of RM134 million, 3.8 times the normalised profit after taxation and minority interest (Patami) and remained prudent and proactive in its capital management amid the known macro and industry challenges.

Astro Said the group recorded a full-year normalised profit before tax and Patami of RM181 million in FY2024.

The dividend declared in respect of FY2024 amounted to 25 sen per share, equating to a 31 per cent payout ratio for the full year.

Group chief executive officer Euan Smith commented that delivery of world-class content and services, accelerating growth in new businesses and transforming legacy cost base to reflect the new realities of the PayTV landscape continue to be the key focus.

“Despite a turbulent economic landscape and the challenges of reinvention faced by PayTV operators globally, Astro remains resilient, implementing multiple initiatives that broaden our technology accessibility and convenience, as well as diversifying our business,” he said.

Total advertising expenditure rose 11 per cent quarter-on-quarter to RM110 million, with performance increasing across all TV, radio and digital platforms.

Moving forward, Astro said its transformation journey sees Team Astro pushing aggressively to be Malaysia’s No.1 entertainment and streaming destination.

Investments continue to be firmly focused on long-term and sustainable growth that includes elevating local content, it said.

The group also highlighted that the current strength of the United States dollar continues to impact multiple cost lines in its business, whilst local economic conditions exacerbated by geopolitical factors and softening customer sentiments (including the impact of the recent Service Tax revision) also present challenges to the industry.

“In softening the impact of these challenges, we have introduced more affordable entry points on both PayTV and streaming services, ‘sooka’ to drive affordability during the last quarter, further enhancing the value of our products and services,” said Astro.

The group continues to maintain a cautious outlook, carefully monitoring business conditions and ensuring effective cost discipline.

-- BERNAMA