KUALA LUMPUR: Apollo Food Holdings Bhd's net profit for the third quarter ended Jan 31, 2010 (3QFY10) rose 79.8% to RM6.76 million from RM3.76 million a year earlier on the back of a 17.39% increase in revenue from RM36.04 million to RM42.31 million.

In a statement to Bursa Malaysia on Thursday, March 25, the company said lower operating costs also contributed to its better results.

Earnings per share rose to 8.45 sen from 4.7 sen in 3QFY09. It did not declare any dividends.

For the nine months to Jan 31, 2010, net profit surged 48.24% y-o-y to RM19.79 million, although revenue declined 11.52% to RM118.57 million.

It said despite the lower revenue, its profits were higher due to lower raw material costs and higher gains on disposal of quoted shares.

Earnings per share rose to 24.74 sen from 16.69 sen for the nine months.

"Although the global economy has shown signs of recovery, the group's operating environment is expected to remain challenging and competitive. Nevertheless, the board anticipates the performance of the group to remain profitable.

"The group will strive to ensure that it continues to achieve satisfactory results by implementing prudent measures, improving operational efficiency while remaining focused on product and service quality," it said.