Malaysian Airline System Bhd, the country’s largest carrier, climbed to the highest in almost two weeks in Kuala Lumpur trading after returning to profit in the fourth quarter.

The carrier rose 4.7 per cent to RM1.99 at 11:40 am, set for their highest close since Feb. 10.

Malaysian Air posted fourth-quarter net income of RM609.7 million after boosting passenger numbers 13 per cent from a year earlier and making paper gains from fuel- hedging contracts.

HwangDBS Vickers Sdn Bhd, TA Securities Sdn Bhd and ECM Libra Sdn Bhd all upgraded the stock after the results.

Profit was “well above” our estimate because of improved passenger and cargo yields, Ng Sem Guan, an analyst at OSK Research Sdn Bhd wrote in a report today.

The airline carried 3.4 million passengers in its fiscal fourth quarter. The increase was due to “aggressive” domestic and global sales campaigns and “competitive” pricing, Malaysian Air said in a statement yesterday.

Fourth-quarter operating profit fell to RM3.8 million from RM66 million a year earlier. The carrier reported a net loss RM299.6 million in the third quarter.

HwangDBS upgraded the stock to “hold” from “fully valued” and raised the 12-month share price estimate to RM1.90 from RM1.70. TA increased the rating to “buy” from “hold” and ECM Libra upgraded its recommendation to “hold” from “sell.” - Bloomberg