Net profits at UOL Group soared 69 per cent to $120.8 million in the first quarter, mainly thanks to the sale of a land plot in Kuala Lumpur.
The firm said yesterday that its revenue jumped by 65 per cent to $408.8 million.
The land sale at Jalan Conlay, near the Bukit Bintang shopping area, brought in $218.5 million in revenue and added $44.3 million in net profit to the bottom line.
UOL said its hospitality and property investment business continued to perform well during the quarter.
Revenue from hotel operations, bolstered by Parkroyal on Pickering, was up 8 per cent year on year to $107.2 million.
Revenue from property investments, including that from Pan Pacific Serviced Suites Beach Road, rose 16 per cent year on year to $48.7 million.
However, excluding the one-off land sale, revenue from the sales of residential properties declined as Waterbank at Dakota and Spottiswoode Residences were completed by end 2013.
UOL chief executive Gwee Lian Kheng said: "By staying focused, we have managed to achieve growth across our three key business segments despite the mixed market conditions in the first quarter of 2014."
He said the firm had, in the first four months of this year, acquired a land parcel in Upper Paya Lebar and a prime Prince Charles Crescent site, "both of which will bolster our pipeline for residential units in Singapore".
In the first quarter of the current financial year, UOL also launched the 555-unit Riverbank@Fernvale, of which it has sold 41 per cent.
UOL added that it plans to launch its Marine Parade condominium Seventy St Patrick's, and its Upper Paya Lebar project, later this year.
Earnings per share for the first quarter was 15.67 cents, up from 9.31 cents a year earlier. Net asset value rose to $8.93 from $8.77 three months earlier.
The firm's shares closed eight cents lower at $6.48 on Wednesday.
This article was published on May 8 in The Straits Times.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.