On Nov 24, the company announced it had won three new contracts totalling $26 million. On Jan 9, it announced that it had secured two additional contracts totalling $38 million. Among the contracts won recently was a fit-out contract for an unnamed data centre — one of the hotter real estate classes at the moment, thanks to wider investor interest in the AI space.
Following these contract wins, investors seemed to have caught on to this relatively new stock. In the past six months, its share price has gained more than a third, closing at 43 cents on Jan 13, valuing the company at $58.5 million. At this level, Attika shares are up 95% over its November 2024 IPO price of 22 cents.
“Why do we venture into these new spaces? It is because these sectors are considered to be more niche as compared to the mass market kind of spaces (offices),” says executive chairman and managing director Steven Tan in an interview with The Edge Singapore.
Among the three contracts announced last November, the largest was for interior fit-out services for the unnamed data centre, accounting for nearly 80% of the combined contract value.
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Tan says the job scope involves high technical barriers and precise technical details.
“Therefore, relevant experience is definitely a must. We demonstrated our expertise to show our clients that we understand data centres and their requirements. And, of course, the compliance is more strict than a normal office fit-out,” he says.
Tan also notes that while tender pricing is competitive, the client or consultant will review past project experience, and most tenders now include quality scoring in award evaluation. Pricing is not the only deciding factor in securing the project. Margin-wise, Tan admits that data centre fit-outs command slightly higher margins, given the higher technical entry level; only three to five contractors would be vying for the job. In contrast, for general additions and alterations (A&A) contracts, up to 20 companies could be in the running.
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Tan expects the data centre fit-out market to be a growth sector in tandem with the growing number of such facilities here. Tan hopes that the recent announcement of the upcoming 700-megawatt (MW) low-carbon data centre on Jurong Island will lead to more similar contracts in the near term.
That said, the office market remains a major sector for Attika. The contracts announced on Jan 9 are for two interior fit-out projects. One is relatively small contract of $2 million while the other is worth $36 million as it encompasses the fitting out of 20 floors covering 371,350 sq ft in total, with completion expected by June 2027.
Given the upbeat construction outlook, Tan says the company aims to achieve an order book target of $80 million by March.
Despite the higher order book, Tan is more concerned about the margins for the respective contracts. “When we get a contract, we will need professionals to run the job and I always tell my guys to focus on the job. I know that they can do a lot in terms of volume, but that will make you lose your focus. Once you lose your focus, the company may suffer unnecessary losses,” explains Tan.
Therefore, Tan would rather his team do a high-quality job and secure additional resources to ensure the company remains competitive on price.
Typically, Attika aims to achieve gross margins of 12%–20% on its projects. “The margins are going to be at this range, unless there are certain companies out there actually going for a price war, which could drive down margins significantly,” explains Tan.
To maintain its margins, Tan will outsource a certain percentage of its work to subcontractors. “Before Covid, we tried to do everything in-house, but after the pandemic, we changed our strategy. Right now, depending on our workload, we will outsource 60% to 70% of our workload to our subcontractors and keep the remaining in-house,” he says.
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“We are not going to let our subcontractors suffer. We still want to have a working relationship with them. We are not going to do everything by ourselves and keep them away. That is also why we are not going to increase our headcount significantly,” adds Tan.
In the latest 1HFY2025 results ended June 30, 2025, Attika’s revenue declined by 51% y-o-y to $19.3 million, mainly due to lower revenue recognition from the project undertaken in the period, compared against the completion of a major corporate office project in 1HFY2024.
The absence of high subcontracting costs in 1HFY2025 resulted in an improvement of Attika’s gross profit margin to 17.2% in 1HFY2025. As a result, Attika’s net profit after tax only suffered a 12.9% y-o-y decline to $1.7 million.
Diversification into property
At the EGM held in April 2025, shareholders overwhelmingly supported the company’s diversification into property, including both development and investment.
Tan explains that he is seeking income-generating, value-add assets with redevelopment potential. In the long run, Tan expects the property business to generate recurring income for the company.
“Everyone knows that the property market, especially in Singapore, will keep going up. We basically look for opportunities to buy certain properties that have the functionality of factory warehousing, which complements our core business activity and also dormitories as well,” says Tan.
On Aug 13, 2025, the company announced plans to buy an industrial unit at 186 Tagore Lane for $6.6 million. The deal was completed on Nov 13, 2025. Tan plans to redevelop this property into a four-storey building, with levels one and two used for factory warehousing and levels three and four for dormitory use.
“For this building, we can either use it to support our business activity, lease it out for rental income or monetise the asset when the price is right. We have these options on the table and we will decide on the best option once the building is completed,” states Tan.
Fixing the liquidity issue
Despite the contract wins and diversification into new business segments, one prominent issue with Attika remains: the counter’s low trading liquidity.
The company meets the Singapore Exchange’s free-float requirement, but Tan holds a significant stake in the company. Based on the company’s latest annual report, as of March 20, 2025, Tan holds a 84.6% stake in the company. The next-largest individual shareholder is a Miao Xiaoyun, who holds 1.12% of the shares.
Naturally, given the company’s relatively low profile and the fact that the vast majority of the shares are held by him, Tan recognises that low liquidity is an issue.
Tan explains that the company is ramping up initiatives, including strengthening investor relations outreach through regular results briefings and clearer communication across business segments, while progressively broadening the shareholder base by engaging long-term institutional and accredited investors.
“Over time, given our growing orderbook and scale, we are hopeful that trading liquidity will follow through as the company builds its public track record and market awareness,” says Tan.
In addition, the company is keen to explore other initiatives, such as market-making liquidity programmes and a commitment to a dividend policy of distributing at least 20% of the company’s profit beyond FY2025.
On Jan 12, Tan sold 15.6 million vendor shares at a price of 35 cents each to prominent investors, including Areca Capital, Asdew Acquisitions, ICH Synergrowth Fund and Lion Global. Following the sale, Tan’s shareholding in the company decreased to around 73.1%.
Meanwhile, Tan intends to capitalise on construction tailwinds through a selective, results-focused growth strategy, focusing on key and higher-complexity projects where technical capability and safety track record are critical.
He is actively winning new orders, but at the same time, the company will place emphasis more on the quality of the orderbook rather than volume and engage in disciplined tender selection, as well as productivity gains through standardisation, prefabrication, and digital controls, ensuring growth remains profitable, cash-generative, and balance-sheet prudent.
“Priority will be placed on sectors with sustained demand visibility, such as public infrastructure, healthcare, data centres and institutional facilities. On the cost front, we will focus on strategies such as in-house Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing or MEP, joinery, and metalwork to control costs, mitigate labour volatility and protect margins,” he says.
