ELK-Desa’s 9MFY19 net profit of RM24.4m (+35.5% yoy; EPS +17.6% yoy) was broadly within our expectations, driven by stronger profit contribution from its hire-purchase financing (which contributed 98% of pre-tax profit). HP receivables grew by 23% yoy partially fuelled by increased leverage within the group through block discounting. The furniture segment (though insignificant in contribution to pre-tax profit), continued to turnaround following management’s move to focus on the domestic markets. Our investment outlook on ELK-Desa has not changed from our last report, we remain upbeat on management’s vertical expansion plan. Maintai BUY, our Price Target of RM1.70 remains unchanged.

ELK-Desa reported a 9MFY19 net profit of RM24.4m, up +35.5% yoy, while EPS rose by 17.6% yoy, underpinned primarily by profits from its hire-purchase division (98% of PBT). Receivables growth remained robust in 3QFY19, rising by 23% yoy driven by higher transactions in the used car market, following management’s move to further expand its scope of financing for cars priced at below RM35,000 (from its previous policy for cars < RM20,000). Overall, ELK’s results appear broadly within our expectations for FY19E, as we anticipate a stronger performance in 4QFY19 following management’s move to leverage up on its borrowings (block-discounting).

The shift in management’s strategy was observed in its stance to leverage up in 3QFY19, whereby total borrowings have been increased by 126% to RM100.2m (from RM44.4m in Dec17). Even so, gearing ratio remains at a low of 0.25x (vs. other similar peers such as Aeon Credit at 4x).

Maintain BUY based on a CY19 Price Target of RM1.70, which is pegged to a 13x P/E multiple on our CY19E EPS of 13 sen. We remain upbeat on ELK-Desa as: i) a furtherexpansion of leverage will drive upside in EPS and minimize dilution effects from the last two rights issue; ii) dividend yields remain attractive at 5.2%-8.1%. Downside risks – high cost-of-living may cause higher defaults.

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