KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 1): Shares in Shin Yang Shipping Corp Bhd rose as much as 20% or 15 sen to 90 sen on Tuesday, on renewed interest in the stock amid resumption of dividend payouts after 10 years.

At 5pm, shares in the Sarawak-based shipbuilder and operator were still up 14sen or 18.67% at 89 sen each. Trading volume stood at 41.85 million shares, more than five times the 60-day average volume of 7.41 million shares.

Shin Yang has proposed a dividend payout of 1.25 sen per share following its latest quarterly results announcement.  

The dividend's ex-date is Dec 7, with payment on Dec 15, it said on Monday (Oct 31). 

The last time Shin Yang paid any dividend was in financial year 2010 (FY2010) at 2.5 sen, FY2011 (1.75 sen) and FY2012 (one sen). 

The latest dividend payout is pending shareholders’ approval in an upcoming general meeting on Dec 6. The group has 1.15 billion shares outstanding after excluding treasury shares.

The group is 57.61%-owned by Shin Yang Holding Sdn Bhd, which is led by group executive chairman Tan Sri Ling Chiong Ho. The Ling family also holds a collective direct stake of 12.26%, Shin Yang's latest annual report showed. 

Shin Yang, whose over 220 vessels cover shipping routes up to East Asia, has seen its share price climb over 165% to a 12-year high of 87.5 sen this year amid a jump in freight rates.

Net profit surged for the financial year ended June 30, 2022 (FY2022) to RM141.8 million or 12.28 sen per share, on a revenue of RM879.68 million, as the performance of both the shipping and shipbuilding segments soared.

Shin Yang's previous record performance was in the year it was listed — in FY2010, when net profit came in at RM135.87 million on a revenue of RM198.5 million.

As shipping rates peaked, Shin Yang said it caters to “selective market-driven routes based on fleet load utilisation” to weather industry challenges, including rising oil prices. It is also confident of stable shipping operations given the high lifting volume after the post-pandemic economic reopening.

“The continuous improvement in operational cost management, fleet efficiency and routes enhancement would be an important priority in the next few quarters,” it said.