PETALING JAYA: Apex Healthcare Bhd’s net profit dipped by 1.5% year-on-year (y-o-y) in the third quarter ended Sept 30 as higher expenses weighed down the improvement in revenue.

       In a filing with the stock exchange yesterday, the pharmaceutical group said it recorded a net profit of RM14.01mil compared with RM14.22mil in the corresponding previous quarter.

       Revenue rose 24.8% y-o-y to RM211.06mil on the back of a significantly higher market demand for pharmaceuticals, diagnostics and consumer healthcare.

       Apex said that revenue growth was also helped by the robust market demand for pulse oximeters, surgical masks, Covid-19 self-test kits in Malaysia as well as the SinoPharm and SinoVac Covid-19 vaccines in Singapore.

       Earnings per share for the quarter under review were 2.96 sen. No dividend was declared for the third quarter.

       Cumulatively, over the first nine months of financial year 2021, Apex registered a net profit of RM38.71mil, 7% y-o-y lower than RM41.63mil in the same period last year.

       Revenue was higher at RM573.1mi: a 6.69% improvement from RM537.15mil in the comparative period.

       “Despite higher revenue, most expense categories are lower than the same period in 2020 because of active cost management measures.

       “Other income decreased 14.1% mainly because of reduced pandemic support grants from the Singapore government,” the group said.

       Commenting on its prospects, Apex said it maintained its cautious stance and expected the business environment to stay challenging for the rest of the current financial year and into 2022.