- Shares in Supermax, a Malaysian glove maker, have surged 1,000% since April as the
pandemic continues to fuel sales of protective clothing. - The company's distribution centers sold four months' worth of inventory in under six weeks, and it's building three new factories to satisfy demand.
- Supermax rivals Kossan Rubber and Top Glove have also seen their stock prices rise by more than 180% in less than four months.
- The performance is comparable to electric-car maker Tesla's shares more than tripling over the same period.
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A Malaysian glove maker's stock has soared 1,000% in less than four months as the
Supermax shares have surged from about 1.5 Malaysian ringgit (35 cents) to 18.5 ringgit ($4.34) since the start of April, boosting the group's market capitalization from below $2.5 billion to north of $25 billion.
The company's revenue rose 24% in the three months to March 31, boosting its pre-tax profit by 93% to the ringgit equivalent of $22.4 million, according to its third-quarter earnings report on Sentieo, a financial-research site.
"The demand for
The robust appetite for gloves, coupled with declines in the price of oil and raw materials, led to "bumper profits," they said.
Supermax is doubling down by building three new factories simultaneously, which should boost its annual output by 12 billion gloves to over 38 billion by 2022, they added.
Rivals are also benefiting from the glove frenzy. Shares in Kossan Rubber Industries have jumped about 180% since the start of April, while Top Glove stock has climbed around 280%.
The outsized gains are comparable to Tesla, which has seen its stock more than triple over the same period.