5 Things I Learned From the 2020 Genting Singapore (SGX: G13) AGM
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COVID-19 has certainly hit Genting Singapore (SGX: G13) hard.
Earlier this month, the company expressed pessimism for its business outlook for the remaining of 2020 due to the pandemic.
This is only expected as Genting Singaporeâs principal activities lie in its integrated resorts including gaming, hospitality, MICE, and entertainment.
Further, the company derives almost all of its revenue from Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) in Singapore.
Evidently, Genting Singaporeâs services are not essential so the company has suspended âalmost allâ operations since 7 April this year.
RWSâs gaming venue is to remain shut even after the circuit breaker ends on 1 June this year.
RWS seemed poised for massive growth when early last year, RWS announced plans to invest S$4.5 billion to expand its gross floor area (GFA) by 50%. But COVID-19 has certainly put a dampener to those plans.
I tuned in to Genting Singaporeâs virtual AGM to find out how it intends to navigate its way past such trying times.
Here are five things I learned from the 2020 Genting Singapore AGM:
1. Fall in Revenue and Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization in FY2019
Genting Singapore posed a 2.3% and 3.2% fall in revenue and interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) year-on-year respectively for FY2019.
The decrease in revenue was mainly due to the 3.5% fall in gaming revenue which comprised 65% of the companyâs total revenue.
Although reasons for the decrease were not elaborated upon at the AGM, the 2019 annual report attributed the fall in revenue and EBITDA to
“2019 [being] a year of geopolitical volatilities which saw a slowdown of the global economy”.
2. COVID-19âs Impact on Genting Singapore Will Be SevereÂ
International tourists play a significant role in driving RWSâs growth.
Hence, RWSâs business will be hit hard as the global international passenger capacity has decreased significantly.
The International Air Transport Association expects global passenger demand in 2021 to be 24% below 2019 levels.
In fact, IATA does not expect 2019 global passenger demand levels to be exceeded until 2023.
Even though domestic travel is likely to recover faster than international travel, the short-term outlook for Singaporeâs tourism scene is bleak since Singapore has a small domestic market.
According to Genting Singapore COO Tan Hee Teck, Singaporeâs tourism industry will only open up âgradually over the next 18 monthsâ.
Travel and tourism spending could potentially return to pre-crisis levels only from around the second half of 2021 to the beginning of 2022.
3. Genting Singapore Will Rely on Government Support and Cash Reserves to Survive COVID-19
The company is receiving government support including the Job Support Scheme, foreign workers levy rebate, property tax rebate, and deferment of corporate tax payment.
The COO also mentioned how the company has maintained a net cash position since 2010, providing a financial resilience to withstand the weak operating performance caused by the pandemic.
I referenced Genting Singaporeâs balance sheet to see if this was indeed the case.
As of 31 December 2019, Genting Singapore had close to S$4 billion in cash and about S$261 million in short-term and long-term borrowings. The company also has a very healthy current ratio of 5.9. These reflect Genting Singaporeâs excellent liquidity position.
Although the companyâs cash position will deplete because of high CAPEX for the expansion of RWS, it continues to stay in a net cash position. The COO reiterated that the company will be able to withstand âa severe but temporary cash burnâ.
4. RWSâs Expansion Plans Will Be Derailed Due to COVID-19
In early 2019, RWS announced its âRWS 2.0â expansion plans to invest S$4.5 billion to expand its current GFA by about 50%.
Some of its plans include adding new themed environments at Universal Studios Singapore and tripling the size of its S.E.A Aquarium.
The integrated resort (IR) will also have a new driverless transport system that provides last-mile connectivity between the mainland and Sentosa.
I was interested to understand how COVID-19 will affect the otherwise very exciting plans RWS had intended to embark on.
The COO said that the construction of RWS 2.0 will run into construction schedule slippages due to global supply chain disruptions and labour shortages.
Further, in adhering to the social distancing enhanced safety measures, some revisions to RWS 2.0âs designs are required before finalising its construction plans.
RWS 2.0âs development will be staggered and is expected to be completed âfive to six yearsâ from the commencement of construction works.
5. Update on Genting Singapore’s Expansion Into Japan’s IR Market
The COO provided an update on its expansion into Japanâs IR market.
He said that Genting Singapore was withdrawing from the Osaka IR bid, focusing its efforts on bidding for the Yokohama IR licence instead.
This was done after careful evaluation and having considered shareholdersâ comments about the Osaka IR bid at the extraordinary general meeting in February this year.
Genting Singapore is currently engaged in the Request-for-Concept process for the Yokohama IR bid and will study the Request-for-Proposal when itâs issued by the Japanese government in the coming months.
Genting Singapore is also currently in discussion with potential partners on the viability of a local consortium.
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