Minor International Public Company Limited (SET: MINT) today announced strong financial results for the fourth quarter of 2022. MINT’s 4Q22 core net profit of Baht 2.4 billion was a y-y increase of 44% from 4Q21 and a q-q increase of 18% from 3Q22. This performance was driven by MINT’s continued efforts to drive revenue, manage costs and strengthen operational efficiency. The reopening of international borders globally and rising consumer spending contributed to y-y recovery, boosting all three of MINT’s business units. Hotels in Thailand and the Maldives, Anantara Vacation Club business and world-class dining restaurants under the Wolseley Group in the UK led the q-q improvement.
For the entire year in 2022, MINT reported strong core profit of Baht 2.0 billion, a huge turnaround from the core loss of Baht 9.3 billion recorded in 2021. On a reported basis, including non-recurring items, MINT achieved net profit of Baht 1.9 billion in 4Q22 and Baht 4.3 billion in 2022, compared with net losses of 1.6 billion in 4Q21 and Baht 13.2 billion for the year 2021.
Minor Hotels reported core net profit of Baht 1.9 billion in 4Q22, a y-y increase of 57% from 4Q21 and a q-q increase of 25% from 3Q22. Robust domestic leisure and corporate travel, as well as international arrivals, helped boost overall demand in the quarter following the easing of travel restrictions globally. RevPar of hotels in Europe and Latin America, the Maldives and Australia continued strong positive momentum driven by rates, exceeding pre-COVID-19 levels for another quarter.
In Q4 2022, Thailand’s RevPar recovered to pre-COVID-19 levels for the first time since the pandemic, due principally to an increase in room rates. RevPar in December 2022 exceeded pre-pandemic levels by 9%, led by hotels in Bangkok. During the quarter, Minor Hotels opened the Anantara Plaza Nice Hotel in France and The Plaza Doha by Anantara in Qatar and introduced the NH brand to Asia with the debut of NH Boat Lagoon Phuket Resort in Thailand. These additions bolstered Minor Hotels’ hotel portfolio, which grew to 531 hotels and 76,996 rooms in 56 countries as at end 2022.
Minor Food’s core profit in 4Q22 grew to Baht 402 million, reflecting both y-y and q-q growth. Strong dine-in traffic in Minor Food’s Thailand and Australia hubs overcame a slowdown of operations in China, where the government imposed stringent COVID-19 restrictions to combat big waves of infections throughout the country. Recently, China has seen a V-shaped recovery following the elimination of local lockdowns and the reopening of international borders. Minor Food’s brands continue to innovate to meet changing customer lifestyles and preferences with store expansions customized for branding, location and household penetration.
In 4Q22, Dairy Queen piloted Thailand’s very own pop-up store with a fun design, seating service and limited-time-only menu, in addition to its traditional kiosk format. These pop-ups boosted customer engagement and brand perception. Burger King also launched the newest flagship store, “Restaurant of the Future” in Thailand with advanced technologies that will be rolled out to other stores to generate customer excitement and optimize store operations.
In addition to strengthening operational performance, MINT focused on improving its financial leverage and net debt-to-equity ratio, which fell to 1.17x at end of 2022. MINT further solidified its equity base through business recovery and the exercise of warrants, while interest-bearing debt continued to decrease following the repayment of existing debt and strategic asset rotation via the saleand-manage back of Tivoli Coimbra. MINT’ strong focus on the health of its balance sheet has proven successful.
4Q22 also marked the return of full process of long-term strategic planning after the pandemic. A new and shorter three-year plan for the period 2022-2025 prioritizes high-level strategic and financial objectives, accelerating business growth through its brand strength, high-value asset portfolio and profitable partnerships, while enhancing productivity and effecting digital transformation. These growth-driven strategies will be driven by our experienced team, our strong balance sheet and continued prudent financial resource management.
MINT has another aspiration to maximize shareholders’ return. As a step towards achieving this goal, MINT is contemplating to propose a cash dividend at 30% of 2022 core profit and potentially another interim dividend later in the year given favorable operating conditions across all businesses. The decision, however, will be subject to the approval from the board of directors and shareholders.
Mr. Dillip Rajakarier, Group CEO of MINT, commented, “I am proud of our team for driving and delivering another impressive 4Q22. As we enter the post-pandemic era, I am looking forward to another successful year in 2023 as the business outlook is looking strong. Alongside our new three-year strategy, the focus for 2023 and beyond will be seizing new opportunities that unlock and accelerate growth and profitability, while maintaining MINT’s position as a global market leader. We have emphatically returned to growth and MINT is uniquely positioned to capture the exciting opportunities that lie ahead.”
