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• Tiong Woon Corp is riding the construction wave in Singapore with a sizeable fleet of cranes -- and, importantly, offering an integrated solution to customers that go beyond just the cranes.
 Michael Ang, CEO, Tiong Woon Corp.• But at a 1H results briefing, CEO Michael Ang made an interesting point: The real moat is not just owning lots of cranes. Competitors can buy equipment, and are adding capacity.
• Tiong Woon’s stronger defence lies in its people and execution capability. Its trained workforce, engineering know-how and project-management experience are much harder to replicate quickly.
• Safety credentials and operating procedures matter greatly. For complex, high-value lifting jobs, customers care about whether you can execute safely and reliably—not simply who offers the lowest price.
• Customer trust and regional execution add another layer of advantage. Tiong Woon’s track record, repeat customers and ability to deliver integrated solutions across geographical markets and across industries strengthen its competitive position.
• CFO William Tan put it this way: "Actually, the truth is our biggest investment is in human capital. If you look at our P&L, our single largest cost is staff cost. Last year, it hit $65 million, 30-40% of revenue. Our (asset) depreciation is 20-30% of revenue."
• Following the 1H briefing, CGS International put out a report, excerpts of which are below .....
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Excerpts from CGS report
Analysts: Natalie Ong & Then Wan Lin
| Tiong Woon Corp : 40% GPM sustainable |
■ FY6/26F core PATMI (S$22.3m, +31% yoy) was in line at 95% of our FY26F.
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TIONG WOON
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Share price:
$0.96
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Target:
$1.33
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■ We believe FY27F-29F GPMs in the 40% region are sustainable, upheld by higher utilisation and higher-margin high-tonnage/integrated lift projects.
■ Reiterate Add. TWC is a beneficiary of regional construction- and infrastructure-focused nation-building plans.
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| Track record positions it favourably with past/existing customers |
TWC's haulage and marine fleet and engineering know-how make it a one-stop heavy lift solutions provider, allowing it to charge higher rates (and margins) for integrated lift solutions, compared to pure equipment rental.
CFO William TanWe believe TWC is actively vying for more integrated heavy lift projects, such as semiconductor, data centre and petrochemical projects, which should deliver improved margins.
The majority of heavy lift and hauling services involve above-ground (superstructure) work, which will typically be awarded to crane subcontractors c.12 months after the main contractors are selected, and run up to 2 years.
As such, we expect to see more order wins from Singapore over 4QCY26F4QCY27F and for TWC's earnings to peak in FY28F/29F.
Management credits its executional track record in helping retain customers and believes that it stands a good chance of being awarded subsequent contracts.
| External rental of equipment is a strategic decision |
External rental of equipment, also known as cross-hiring, arises due to scheduling conflicts or management's decision to cross-hire, and thereby accept a lower margin, instead of prematurely incurring capex (expanding its fleet) to capture a job.
In its FY26 analyst briefing, management shared that FY26 cross-hiring was at a similar level (c.S$12m or 6% of total revenue) compared to the prior year but expects it to moderate to c.4% of revenue over the next few years.
| Reiterate Add with higher TP of S$1.33 |
Reiterate Add due to TWC’s strong regional track record and vertically integrated model.
 Natalie Ong, CGS analystWe believe it stands to benefit from various construction- and infrastructure-focused nation-building plans implemented in Southeast Asia and the Middle East.
We cut our FY27F-28F EPS by 2-10% on more conservative fleet utilisation estimates and margins.
Our TP rises to S$1.33 as we roll over to CY28F EV, still based on 4x EV/EBITDA, a c.30% discount to global peers given TWC’s smaller scale, implying 9x FY28F P/E.
Re-rating catalysts: higher fleet utilisation/market share, a higher dividend payout ratio.
Downside risks: construction delays, lifting TWC's external equipment rental costs.
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→ See also: This Contractor Has Record S$798m Order Book, 30+% Margin, S$172m Net Cash
