Grand Ming Group Holdings Limited Announces Annual Results for the Year Ended 31 March 2024

Highlights
- Revenue amounted to HK$532.7 million, a decrease of 89.4% from the previous financial year.
- Net profit for the year was HK$298.5 million, representing a decrease of 76.6%.
- Strive to develop the two new data centres in Fanling.
- Continue to sell the remaining units of The Grand Marine and Cristallo.

HONG KONG, June 26, 2024 - (ACN Newswire) - Grand Ming Group Holdings Limited (the "Company" and together with its subsidiaries, the "Group", stock code: 1271.HK) today announces its annual results for the year ended 31 March 2024 ("FY 2023/24").

In FY 2023/24, consolidated revenue amounted to HK$532.7 million (FY 2023/24: HK$5,004.6 million), representing a decline of 89.4% as compared to FY 2023/24.  The consolidated gross profit also decreased 91.5% to HK$168.6 million (FY 2023/24: HK$1,987.8 million).  These are primarily due to a substantial decrease in the number of properties sold from property development projects during the year under review. Net profit for FY 2023/24 decreased by 76.6% to HK$298.5 million (FY 2023/24: HK$1,275.5 million).  Excluding the change in fair value of investment properties, the Group recorded an underlying loss of HK$85.7 million in FY 2023/24, as compared to an underlying profit of HK$1,299.3 million in FY 2023/24.

A final dividend for the year ended 31 March 2023 of 5.0 HK cents per share and a special dividend of 15.0 HK cents per share were paid to the shareholders of the Company on 18 September 2023.   An interim dividend for the six months ended 30 September 2023 of 4.0 HK cents per share was paid to Shareholders on 20 December 2023. With challenging market landscape, the Board does not recommend payment of a final dividend for the year ended 31 March 2024.

The Group has demonstrated a high level of expertise in initiating and executing property development projects. At present, the Group’s property development projects for sale include "The Grand Marine" at No.18 Sai Shan Road, Tsing Yi, and “Cristallo” at No. 279 Prince’s Edward Road West.

The residential development project “The Grand Marine” is located at No. 18 Sai Shan Road, Tsing Yi, the New Territories.  It offers 776 units with a total gross floor area of approximately 400,000 square feet. This project has been well received by the market, with over 98% of the units sold cumulatively.

The residential-cum-commercial development project “The Grands”, located at No. 45 Pau Chung Street, To Kwa Wan, Kowloon, provides 76 residential units with commercial shops on the ground and first floor covering a total gross floor area of approximately 31,000 square feet.  This project was also well received and all residential units had been sold.  Around 31% of the units were handed over to the buyers during FY 2023/24.

The Group continued to execute its two property development projects includes a site located at No.1 Luen Fat Street, Fanling and No. 66 Fort Street and No. 57 Kin Wah Street, North Point respectively.

The site situated at No.1 Luen Fat Street, Fanling, the New Territories, is developing into a 17-storey residential-cum-commercial tower with a total gross floor area of approximately 36,000 square feet.  The Group had agreed to the provisional basic terms of the proposed in-situ land exchange and is currently negotiating the land premium with the Hong Kong Government.  Meanwhile superstructure works is underway and the development is scheduled to be completed in or around mid-2025.

The project in North Point comprises two sites at No. 66 Fort Street and No. 57 Kin Wah Street, North Point, Hong Kong, with a total gross floor area of approximately 30,000 square feet.  The site at No. 57 Kin Wah Street will be developed into a 27-storey residential tower, while the site at No. 66 Fort Street will be developed into a single-storey commercial shop.  Foundation works are underway and the project is expected to be completed in or around the second half of 2027.

The balanced portfolio development initiative also includes geographical footprint expansion. The Group's development project in Mainland China is located in the Guangxi-ASEAN Economic and Technological Development Zone, Wuming District, Nanning City, Guangxi Province, with a gross floor area of approximately 1,435,000 square feet.   It will be a luxury residential project with a leisure and healthy lifestyle theme, comprising high-rise apartments and villas, complemented by facilities including commercial and a wellness centre.  It will target at the elderly, retirees and their families.  Superstructure works for the high-rise apartments and basement works for the remaining part of the site are now underway.  The development is expected to be completed in or around the second half of 2026.

The Group currently owns two data centres, iTech Tower 1 and iTech Tower 2.  Revenue from its leasing business increased by 14.4% year on year to HK$268.8 million.  This was mainly due to an overall increase in the amount of space occupied and increased power consumption by customers.

The projects at No. 3 On Kui Street and No. 8 On Chuen Street in Fanling, New Territories are now known as "iTech Tower 3.1" and "iTech Tower 3.2" respectively, with an aggregate gross floor area of approximately 186,000 square feet.  The land swap for both sites has been completed and the land premium has been fully settled. 

The infrastructure and power supply of both iTech Tower 3.1 and 3.2 are designed to accommodate cloud computing and AI workloads. The superstructure of iTech Tower 3.1 has been completed and the installation of electrical and mechanical equipment and internal fit-out is now underway.  During the year, this data centre was committed to a single customer under a long-term contract and is scheduled for phased delivery from mid-2025.  Foundation work for iTech Tower 3.2 is well underway and the development is expected to be completed in or around 2026.

Mr. Chan Hung Ming, Chairman and Executive Director of Grand Ming Group Holdings concluded, “Our successful business evolution and transformation into a property development company gives us the confidence to address macro trends and market dynamics in a challenging economic environment.  Our balanced operating and property portfolio, demand-driven development pipeline, committed management and continuous evolutionary mindset position us well to weather the current volatility while staying the course to drive future growth and value creation.”

“We continue to operate in a challenging environment in the reporting year.  The uncertain economic outlook and persistently high interest rates have slowed the recovery of the local economy and property market.  On 28 February 2024, the Hong Kong government announced the cancellation of all demand-side management measures for residential property, the suspension of the mortgage stress test and the relaxation of the mortgage loan-to-value ratio.  All these measures improved market sentiment and led to an increase in the volume of residential property transactions.  Seizing this opportunity, we successfully sold all the units of ‘The Grands’ and most of the remaining units of ‘The Grand Marine’.  The proceeds from the property sales were used to replenish the Group's working capital and to repay existing bank loans. We will continue to sell the remaining units of ‘The Grand Marine’ and ‘Cristallo’.  Development of iTech Tower 3.1 and 3.2 is on schedule.  We are committed to meeting our customers' stringent requirements and delivering iTech Tower 3.1 on time.  Meanwhile, we are working to secure customers for iTech Tower 3.2.  We continue to improve and upgrade the existing facilities at iTech Tower 1 and 2 to provide reliable services and meet customer needs. As construction labour and material costs remain high, our construction team will focus on internal construction projects for our data centre leasing and property development segment.”

About Grand Ming Group Holdings Limited (Stock code: 1271.HK)

The Group is principally engaged in the business of property development and property leasing, as well as building construction. As a local wholesale co-location provider of high-tier data centres, the Group is one of the dedicated service providers in Hong Kong which owns and uses the entire building for leasing to customers for data centre use. Its clientele includes multinational data centre operator, telecommunications company and financial institutions. The Group owns two high-tier data centre buildings, namely iTech Tower 1 and iTech Tower 2.  It also acquired two pieces of land in Fanling, the New Territories for developing into two high-tier data centres which have been named as iTech Tower 3.1 and 3.2. Furthermore, the Group’s property development projects for sale include "The Grand Marine" at No.18 Sai Shan Road, Tsing Yi, "The Grands" at No. 45 Pau Chung Street, To Kwa Wan and “Cristallo” at No. 279 Prince’s Edward Road West.  Besides, property development in progress includes a site located at No.1 Luen Fat Street, Fanling and a site located at No. 66 Fort Street and No. 57 Kin Wah Street, North Point.  In Mainland China the Group owns a piece of land at Guangxi-ASEAN Economic and Technological Development Zone, Wuming District, Nanning City, Guangxi Province for development into a luxury residential project under the theme of leisure and healthy lifestyle.  

Media Contacts:
Angel Yeung | Jovian Communications Ltd | Email: news@joviancomm.com