09/04/2026

BIZ & FINANCE THURSDAY | APR 9, 2026

20

MARKETS/FROM THE BROKERS

SUNBIZ presents extracts of a selection of commentaries and research reports received from stockbrokers on counters that could be of interest to investors.

DISCLAIMER: The information is extracted from stockbrokers’ commentaries and research reports and do not represent the views or opinions of Sun Media Corporation Sdn Bhd. It is not a solicitation, recommendation or an offer to buy or sell the equities featured. Sun Media Corporation shall not be liable or responsible for any consequences resulting from usage of the information.

[ Compiled by SunBiz Team

Bank Islam, Awaris offer will writing via mobile app KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd (BIMB) in collaboration with Amanah Warisan Bhd (Awaris) launched the Awaris will-writing service via BIMB Mobile, making it one of the first Malaysian banks to offer such services through a mobile banking application. The bank said this marks an important step in its mission to modernise wealth management services by embedding essential advisory and legacy planning services into digital platforms. Bank Islam wealth management director Datin Zaharah Abdul Muttalib said customers only need to download the BIMB Mobile app and follow three simple steps to write a will, which can be completed in as quick as five minutes. She said it saves cost and time compared to the conventional will-writing approach. “(Previously,) customers who wanted to write a will had to go through several agencies, and it also involved lawyers and so on, but with the digital platform, it is much more convenient now. “The witness (for the will) is a third party, whereby our partner Awaris has designated the witness, so there is no need to go through lawyers and so on,” she told reporters after launching the service during the Premier Wealth Client Appreciation Day yesterday . Meanwhile, Awaris CEO and managing director Prof Datuk Ahmad Saruji Abdul Aziz, said in a statement issued at the event that the integration of Awaris’ will-writing capabilities into the BIMB Mobile platform represents a transformative step for the Malaysian digital estate planning landscape. “Our collaboration with Bank Islam is driven by a shared vision to make shariah-compliant legacy planning more accessible and intuitive.” – Bernama AEON Credit Service (M) Bhd Buy. Target price: RM6.80

THE ringgit strengthened to close at 3.97 against the US dollar yesterday, as optimism returned following a two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran in the West Asia conflict. At 6pm, the local note appreciated to 3.9735/9785 against the US dollar from 4.0275/0320 at Tuesday’s close, marking a return to below the 4.00 psychological level, with a day-to-day appreciation of 1.31%. Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said US President Donald Trump had announced a two-week pause in military action against Iran following mediation efforts from Pakistani leaders. “The ringgit’s stronger performance was also supported by prospects of the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, which could help stabilise global oil supply and ease pressure on energy prices. “These developments could provide some temporary respite to the market amid heightened economic uncertainties following the shock from the conflict in West Asia,” he told Bernama. At the close, the ringgit traded higher against a basket of major currencies. It rose against the euro to 4.6407/6465 from 4.6566/6618, appreciated against the British pound to 5.3348/3415 compared with 5.3425/3484, and rose against the Japanese yen to 2.5071/5104 from 2.5229/5258 from Wednesday’s close. At the same time, the local currency traded mostly higher against Asean currencies. It was higher versus the Singapore dollar, at 3.1155/1199 from 3.1381/1419, and appreciated against the Indonesian rupiah to 233.5/233.9 from 235.4/235.8. Meanwhile, the ringgit was almost unchanged versus the Philippine peso at 6.68/6.70. Ringgit rises to 3.97 as US, Iran reach ceasefire deal

Exchange Rates

FOREIGN CURRENCY

SELLING TT/OD

BUYING TT

BUYING OD

1 US Dollar

4.0755 2.8850 3.1860 2.9340 4.7510 2.3660 3.1860 5.4480 5.1720 3.3620 59.6600 65.1600 52.4200 4.4700 0.0249 2.5840 43.5700 1.5200 6.8500 112.6700 109.4000 25.5500 1.3600 44.8600 13.2200 111.9500 N/A

3.9295 2.7690 3.0850 2.8520 4.5960 2.2780 3.0850 5.2750 4.9500

3.9195 2.7530 3.0770 2.8400 4.5760 2.2620 3.0770 5.2550 4.9350

1 Australian Dollar 1 Brunei Dollar 1 Canadian Dollar 1 New Zealand Dollar 1 Singapore Dollar 1 Sterling Pound 1 Swiss Franc 100 UAE Dirham 100 Bangladesh Taka 100 Chinese Renminbi 100 Danish Krone 100 Hongkong Dollar 100 Indian Rupee 100 Indonesian Rupiah 100 Japanese Yen 100 New Taiwan Dollar 100 Norwegian Krone 100 Pakistan Rupee 100 Philippine Peso 1 Euro

106.1000 3.1280 57.1200 59.9500 49.8000

105.9000 2.9280 59.7500 49.6000 3.9500 0.0170 2.4540 39.7800 1.1500 6.2400 106.7600 103.6600 22.8500 0.9800 40.6400 11.3200 N/A N/A

4.1500 0.0220 2.4640

N/A

39.9800 1.3500 6.4400 106.9600 103.8600 23.0500 1.1800 40.8400 11.7200

100 Qatar Riyal 100 Saudi Riyal

100 South Africa Rand 100 Sri Lanka Rupee 100 Swedish Krona

100 Thai Baht

Source: Malayan Banking Bhd/Bernama

AirAsia X Bhd Buy. Target price: RM1.81

Tenaga Nasional Bhd Buy. Target price: RM14.60

April 8, 2026: RM1.26

April 8, 2026: RM5.68

April 8, 2026: RM14.02

Source: Maybank Investment Bank

Source: Maybank Investment Bank

Ssource: Bloomberg

WITH jet fuel price having reached record highs of US$200/bbl, AAX has: – (i) raised overall fares by 30-40%; (ii) cut capacity by 10%; and (iii) embarked on cost rationalisation efforts. According to our calculations, raising overall fares by 30-40% alone will still cause AAX to incur net losses of RM600 million on a full year basis (RM50 million p.m.) assuming jet fuel prices remain at US$200/bbl. To breakeven on a full year basis, we estimate that AAX will have to raise overall fares by 45% AAX states that its Malaysian operations, which traditionally contributes >50% of earnings, has enough jet fuel supply until June at earliest. Elsewhere, most countries are still supplying fuel as usual except for Vietnam. Moreover, its routes from Istanbul and Central Asia are doing better due to passengers wanting to avoid travelling across the Middle East. AAX will even be launching new routes in June 2026 (i.e. Busan, Osaka). For now, AAX stated that it will not need to raise equity financing. Q1’26 results should be within AAX’s guidance which implies core pre-tax profit of RM300 million. January and February 2026 were robust before jet fuel prices surged in Mar 2026. But assuming jet fuel prices average at US$200/bbl in Q2’26, we estimate that Q2’26 will generate net losses of RM200 million. Imputing higher jet fuel prices (US$135/bbl) moderated by higher fares (RM286) in FY26, we slash FY26 earnings to -RM188 million from RM878 million. FY27 and FY28 earnings are unchanged as we assume that jet fuel prices will normalise to US$85/bbl by then. BUY with RM1.81 TP. – Maybank Investment Bank, April 8

Q4’26 results exceeded expectations, with PATMI of RM144 million (+10% YoY, +57% QoQ) bringing FY26 PATMI to RM386 million (+4% YoY) – 10% and 12% higher than our and consensus estimates. The key deviation was lower-than-expected credit cost of 2.2% in Q4’26 due to a one-off ECL model refresh refinement exercise. PIOP of RM1.2 billion (+13% YoY) was in line with forecast on the back of solid income growth (+12% YoY). Associate losses widened 59% QoQ to RM31 million in Q4’26, bringing the FY26 total to RM85 million – mainly due to investments in technology, personnel, and marketing to support business banking rollout. Gross financing receivables were up 11% YoY (QoQ: +2%) – in line with the 10-12% target. The strong growth was driven by personal financing (+14% YoY), superbike financing (+51% YoY), and credit cards (+17% YoY) – the latter two were from a low base. The NPL ratio ticked up 13bps QoQ to 2.61%, although this was still down from 2.64% in FY25. As flagged above, ACSM had made a one-off adjustment of RM131 million in the quarter due to the classification change of debt management (AKPK) loans to stage 2 from stage 3. Following this, LLC eased to 196% from 228% in Q3’26 (FY25: 209%). KPI for FY27 includes: i) Loan growth of 8%, ii) ROE: c.12% (FY26: 13.1%), and iii) dividend payout of >30%. We believe the slower loan growth could be due to a more cautious stance given the ongoing geopolitical developments in the Middle East, among others. BUY with RM6.80 TP. – RHB Research, April 8

TNB’S fuel cost increase has thus far been manageable in our view, with coal price (larger proportion of generation) nowhere near its peak. The migration to a monthly pass through mechanism further insulates TNB from receivables risk. Recall TNB migrated to the Automatic Fuel Adjustment (AFA) mechanism in 2H’25, which allowed for monthly pass through of fuel cost (6 months previously under the ICPT mechanism), thus reducing working capital risk. The increase in TNB’s coal and gas cost has thus far been manageable in our view. TNB announced a narrowing of the AFA rebate to 0.47sen/kWh in April 2026 (from 2.15sen/kWh in Mar 2026), and projected a possible surcharge (0.08sen/kWh) in July 2026. Coal price (Newcastle futures) is up 19% since end-Feb 2026 and is now above TNB’s RP4 reference (RM418/t). We note coal price is nowhere near peak, and in any case, is passed through with just 1-2 months lag. Gas meanwhile runs on a 2-tier pricing with differing time lag to Brent prices. Tier 1 price (for first 800mmscfd of volume representing the bulk of the power sector usage) is referenced to the MRP and lags Brent by 8 months. Tier 2 price (for subsequent volume over 800mmscfd) meanwhile is referenced directly to Brent with a lag of 2 months. There are several risk factors for our earnings estimates, price target, and rating for Tenaga. Regulatory developments, such as the determination of regulated returns, have direct impact on earnings. Changes in electricity demand patterns or plant outages could also result in loss of earnings for Tenaga. BUY with RM14.60 TP. – Maybank Investment Bank, April 8