On 13 September, Regional Express Holdings Limited (Rex) announced the Group's results for the full Financial Year to 30 June 2006. The highlights of which are outlined below:
Revenue increased by 20% to $174 million
Passenger numbers increased by 15% to 1.2 million
Profit after tax increased by 141% to $15.7 million
Cash holdings increased from $4 million to $23 million without any interest-bearing debt
Returns on assets of 15.7%
Commenting on the results, Rex Executive Chairman Lim Kim Hai said he was delighted that the Group had delivered on its IPO forecast to the shareholders.
"The results were very gratifying against the backdrop of a continuing difficult environment. Besides the sharp fuel price hikes, there were also the ongoing pressures of steep price increases from monopoly infrastructure providers and regulators.
"I pay tribute to the staff and management who have made this wonderful result possible. It is even more gratifying that we have been able to achieve this result while at the same time maintaining our average fare at competitively low levels.
"I also thank all of our regional communities for their continued support and co-operation. With an effective partnership, Rex has been able to increase services to regional communities whilst maintaining affordable fares."
The airline, which was listed on the Australian Stock Exchange in November 2005, announced that it would be paying out an unfranked final dividend amounting to $5.75m or five cents per share. The record date for determining entitlements will be 27th September 2006. The payment date will be the 4th October 2006.
Looking at the current financial year, Mr Lim said that the operating environment continued to be challenging but had confidence that the Group would be able to achieve a profit growth of the order of 10%.
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