Thai Bev

Thai Bev: decent 1Q12 results. Revenue increased by 31% YoY to THB 40.6b, following the acquisition and consolidation of financials of Serm Suk since Sep ’11. Amongst the segments, Spirits revenue rose 15%, the Beer business rose 8.7%, the Non-alcoholic Beverage business rose 343% and the Food business rose 5.8%. Net profit grew by 46.4% YoY to THB 4.33b, boosted by improved operating margins (14.3% from 13.5% yoy) and lower effective tax rate. From a geographical breakdown, Thai Bev’s International Business spurred most of Thai Bev’s growth, with sales growth of 35.3%, driven by continued growth in Scotch whisky (in the USA) and new premium range of Chang Export beer (in Asean). The stock trades at 3.1x P/B, 11.7x annualized 1Q12 P/E.