Sime Darby Berhad is a trading conglomerate company started in Malaysia where it has a strong presence. It is one of the largest companies in the country and a public listed company in Bursa Malaysia. Trading under stock code 4197, Sime Darby is involved in a variety of businesses which have been very profitable over the years.
Sime Darby Plantations
Any mention of the Sime Darby name would surely draw the attention to plantations. This is after all the most prominent business that the company has been involved in. Sime Darby however, has been venturing into other sectors and areas that include:
- Healthcare
- Industrial
- Automotive
- Retail
- Insurance
Background of Sime Darby
Sime Darby got its name from the British businessmen founders Williem Sime and Henry Darby. It was in 1910 that they formed the Sime, Darby and Co which was focused on the rubber industry. It would then continue to expand into palm oil and cocoa which were very successful as well. It would then grow to become one of the largest companies in Malaysia and Singapore in the 1970s before it was bought over by Tradewinds Sdn Bhd. Later on, Sime Darby Berhad would incorporate with Consolidated Plantations Berhad.
The current Sime Darby name is actually a merger of Sime Darby Berhad with 2 other companies namely:
- Guthrie – One of the oldest trading companies in the region started in 1821 in Singapore. Guthrie Group was once the largest public issue in Malaysia when it went public in 1989
- Golden Hope – This company started as a tea and coffee trading company which grew to become a major estate and plantations company in Malaysia
The merger of the 3 companies was then known as the merger of 3 giants.
Consumer perception
Investing into Sime Darby’s shares have often been regarded to be one of the very safe moves as it is one of the blue-chip counters that has been profitable and very stable. This comes from the fact that Sime Darby’s prudent fund management has been very positive while consumers have been very confident of the company.