The Kingsbury 1Q in red; revenue slumps over 70%

The Kingsbury PLC continues to remain in the red having posted net losses for five straight quarters after being hit with a two-fold impact— first from the Easter Sunday attack in April 2019, and now the global pandemic— both which dealt a crippling blow to the tourism sector.

However, in the April-June, 2020 quarter (1Q21) The Kingsbury PLC managed to keep its losses under check having taken a series of measures despite the immediate slowdown stemming from the COVID-19 outbreak.

The interim financial accounts released to the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) showed that The Kingsbury had imposed strict measures to control its overheads amid a drastic drop in revenues.

With partial operations from mid June 2020, the company said a slight improvement in the food & beverage revenue was seen.

“We are yet to see an improvement in the rooms segment with restrictions in tourist arrivals being in place with the country’s borders still closed,” The Kingsbury said in a note to its 
interim accounts.

It added that the management continues to evaluate the situation arising from the pandemic and is currently practicing several cost management measures to benefit the cash flows, while also adhering to health and safety guidelines issued by health authorities and 
government bodies.

For 1Q21, The Kingsbury posted a net loss of Rs. 251.72 million, a 1 percent increase compared to the Rs. 250.259 million loss posted in 1Q20. The basic loss per share for the first three months of the new financial year was Rs.1.04, against a loss per share of Rs. 1.03 a year ago.

The interim financial statements released this week showed that The Kingsbury contained its losses by trimming administrative and marketing expenses. 

The administrative expenses contracted by 17 percent year-on-year (YoY) to Rs.163.47 million, whereas the marketing expenses came down 67 percent YoY to Rs. 11.18 million.

Meanwhile, the city hotel’s turnover for the quarter plunged 70 percent to Rs. 77.7 million in the quarter under review, demonstrating the massive hit from the pandemic related economic malaise.

Diversified Hayleys group remains the largest shareholder of The Kingsbury PLC with over 60 percent issued shares of the company. State-managed private sector pension fund, Employees’ Provident Fund, also has 10.5 percent stake in the hotel company as the third single largest shareholder. (SAA)