Sunday 27 March 2011

Esso Malaysia Berhad

On 25.3.2011, Esso said that it was unaware of any plans by ExxonMobil (its parent) to take Esso private following a newspaper article.  Interestingly, exactly a year ago, on 30.3.2010, Esso also said the same, denying any privatisation move by ExxonMobil, following an article that appeared in the Malaysian Reserve on that matter.



Business structure of Esso

The company is involved in:
1. refining and
2. marketing of petroleum products.

Esso is a subsidiary of Exxon Mobil Corporation which is the world's largest energy company.  Currently, Esso's refinery is the third largest in Malaysia after Shell and Petronas.

April 1995:  Esso's licensed refining capacity was upgraded to 75,000 barrels per day (bpd) from 66,000 bpd previously.
1996: A further increase in licensed capacity to 88,000 bpd
Nov 1999:  Exxon merged with Mobil to form Exxon Mobil.
May 2000:  Esso entered into a Shared Services Agreement with Mobil Oil Malaysia.  Esso and Mobil will continue to operate as two separate companies each retaining their Esso and Mobil brand names.

Esso is also the third largest petroleum products player in Malaysia.  It is perhaps important to note one major difference between Esso and its main local rival, Shell Refining.  Shell Refining sells its products through its sister company, Shell Marketing, at prices determined by the Singapore free market (the so-called Singapore Postings).  Unlike Shell, Esso sells directly to the consumers of government fixed prices according to automatic pricing mechanism (APM).


Revenues are mainly derived from the sale of petroleum products to domestic customers including its affiliates and competitors, and sales to ExxonMobil Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd. (EMAPPL), Singapore.




Comments by SPG Dynaquest

Based on its end August 2010 price of RM 2.71, Esso as at 3.6.2010  was selling at:
  • prospective PER of 3.6 x, 
  • nett DY of 3.3% and 
  • 1.18 x its NTA of RM 2.30 
It is to be noted that Esso's gearing ratio of 1.3 (nett borrowings divided by shareholders' equity) as at 30.6.10 can be considered high by local standards.

Shares outstanding:  270m
Par RM 0.50
Major shareholders:  ExxonMobil International Holdings (18.3.2010):  65%
At a price of 3.80 per share, market cap is RM 1,026 m.

Past Performances
      
  
           DPS    EPS     
2000   0.0       8.1
2001   0.0     67.6
2002   7.2     -3.2
2003   7.2     21.1
2004   8.6     -9.0
2005   8.6       7.3
2006   8.6      2.6
2007   8.8     21.2
2008   8.9    -93.1
2009   9.0     53.9
2010  10.5   99.50
Total  77.4    176.0

(DPS is net after tax)

DPO ratio = 77.4 / 176 = 44%

Spreadsheet on ESSO Malaysia for latest VALUATION figures.
https://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=0AuRRzs61sKqRdHpkbEdmdmRIZkpGUjMtSzRwbEpOUFE&output=html


Commentary on Prospects 

The outlook for the Malaysian economy in 2011 remains positive, and demand for petroleum products is expected to be robust.  However, volatility in the crude price environment will continue to affect the industry. Recognising the potential for earnings volatility, the Company's focus shall remain on sustaining  flawless operations, cost control and product and services quality, as well as strengthening its business position through continued emphasis on strategic investment.



Esso pares gains after refuting privatisation news
Written by Joseph Chin of theedgemalaysia.com
Friday, 25 March 2011 15:12


KUALA LUMPUR: ESSO MALAYSIA BHD [] shares shed half of the early gains in late afternoon trade on Friday, March 25 after the company refuted a news report it could be taken private.

At 2.56pm, Esso was up 39 sen to RM3.88, off the high of RM4.40 at the midday break.

The FBM KLCI was up 1.67 points to 1,515.51. Turnover was 731.12 million shares valued at RM967.67 million. There were 420 gainers, 252 losers and 291 stocks unchanged.

Esso informed Bursa Malaysia during the midday break that it was not aware of any plans to take it private as had been reported.

“Esso wishes to also announce that there have been no undisclosed developments which would account for the apparent unusual market activity,” it said, referring to the high trading volume in its shares.


Esso surges amid talk on privatisation
Published: 2011/03/25

Shares of ESSO Malaysia Bhd (3042)rose to its highest in more than four years on unusually heavy volume yesterday, amid rumours the group may be taken private.


Some 1.32 million shares changed hands yesterday. This was significantly higher than its 30-day average volume of 143,000 shares.

The stock gained 8.7 per cent or 28 sen, to close at RM3.49 yesterday, its highest since August 2006.

Esso is 65 per cent held by ExxonMobil Corp, one of the world's largest oil companies.

Esso operates a refinery in Port Dickson, Negri Sembilan, as well as a growing network of petrol stations across the country.

For the financial year ended December 31 2010, it almost doubled its net profit to RM268.6 million. Revenue rose to RM8.42 billion from RM8.03 billion recorded in 2009.

http://www.btimes.com.my/Current_News/BTIMES/articles/esso24/Article/#ixzz1HmCWXDp0



Esso shares jump 31 sen
Published: 2011/03/26

ESSO Malaysia Bhd (3042) said it is unaware of any plan to take the company private, even as its share price jumped on heavy volume for the second straight day yesterday.


It put on 31 sen to close at RM3.80 yesterday, off an intra-day high of RM4.40. It has gained 18.3 per cent over the last two days.

Some 5.9 million shares changed hands, more than three times that of the previous day.

Esso, a unit of one of the world's largest oil companies Exxon Mobil Corp, told the stock exchange yesterday that it was unaware of any reasons for the share movements.


http://www.btimes.com.my/Current_News/BTIMES/articles/essoma/Article/index_html#ixzz1HmD7vdKj



ExxonMobil to add 12 petrol stations in 2011
Published: 2011/01/18

ExxonMobil is aiming to add another 10-12 petrol stations this year to the current 560.

"Last year, we opened 10 stations. For 2011, our target is about 10 to 12 stations," Esso Malaysia Bhd's head of the retail business sector, Faridah Ali, told reporters this at the launch of Exxonmobil's new Dual Fleet Card.

The new card is to complement the existing Fleet Card programme which is a convenient and value-added computerised payment method that helps companies manage their fleet and fuel expenses.

According to Faridah, with the new card, customers would get a vehicle card assigned to each vehicle and a driver card which carries a specific personal identification number.

With the card, customers can have better control for improved efficiency and cost management. -- Bernama


http://www.btimes.com.my/articles/20110118134941/Article/#ixzz1HmEGXdq1


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