By Adeline Paul Raj
Published: 2009/05/23
MALAYSIA'S second largest banking group Bumiputra-Commerce Holdings Bhd (1023) said it may review its targets for this year if capital markets continue to improve.Its chief executive officer Datuk Seri Nazir Razak said the targets could be reviewed after it releases its second-quarter 2009 results in August.
An improved capital market environment would help brighten the group's growth prospects this year, he said."If we continue to do well in the second quarter, we would have to review our targets. If things look good, then we may revise it upward," he told reporters in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.
The three main targets the group is looking at are its profit, return on equity (ROE) and dividend payout.The group recently reported a first quarter net profit that was 14.7 per cent higher than a year ago, to RM614 million. This translated into a net ROE of 14.2 per cent, which means the group has already exceeded its 2009 target of 12.5 per cent. ROE is a measure of how effectively earnings are reinvested.