PBS Bhd (XKLS:5231) Piotroski F-Score: 3 (As of Jun. 26, 2026) — 40% Below Median


What is PBS Bhd Piotroski F-Score?

PBS Bhd XKLS:5231 -5.00% Piotroski F-Score is 3 as of Jun. 26, 2026, which is 40% below its 10-year median of 5.00. The stock has 4 warning signs investors should review. Among 1,063 Business Services companies, PBS Bhd ranks worse than 84.95% on this metric.

Warning Sign:

Piotroski F-Score of 3 is low, which usually implies poor business operation.

The zones of discrimination were as such:

Good or high score = 7, 8, 9
Bad or low score = 0, 1, 2, 3

PBS Bhd has an F-score of 3. It is a bad or low score, which usually implies poor business operation.

The historical rank and industry rank for PBS Bhd's Piotroski F-Score or its related term are showing as below:

XKLS:5231' s Piotroski F-Score Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: 2   Med: 5   Max: 8
Current: 3

During the past 13 years, the highest Piotroski F-Score of PBS Bhd was 8. The lowest was 2. And the median was 5.

PBS Bhd  (XKLS:5231) Piotroski F-Score Explanation

The developer of the system is Joseph D. Piotroski is relatively unknown accounting professor who shuns publicity and rarely gives interviews.

He graduated from the University of Illinois with a B.S. in accounting in 1989, received an M.B.A. from Indiana University in 1994. Five years later, in 1999, after earning a Ph.D. in accounting from the University of Michigan, he became an associate professor of accounting at the University of Chicago.

In 2000, he wrote a research paper called "Value Investing: The Use of Historical Financial Statement Information to Separate Winners from Losers" (pdf).

He wanted to see if he can develop a system (using a simple nine-point scoring system) that can increase the returns of a strategy of investing in low price to book (referred to in the paper as high book to market) value companies.

What he found was something that exceeded his most optimistic expectations.

Buying only those companies that scored highest (8 or 9) on his nine-point scale, or F-Score as he called it, over the 20 year period from 1976 to 1996 led to an average out-performance over the market of 13.4%.

Even more impressive were the results of a strategy of investing in the highest F-Score companies (8 or 9) and shorting companies with the lowest F-Score (0 or 1).

Over the same period from 1976 to 1996 (20 years) this strategy led to an average yearly return of 23%, substantially outperforming the average S&P 500 index return of 15.83% over the same period.


PBS Bhd Piotroski F-Score Related Terms


PBS Bhd Piotroski F-Score Historical Data

* Premium members only.

The historical data trend for PBS Bhd's Piotroski F-Score can be seen below:

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

PBS Bhd Piotroski F-Score Chart

PBS Bhd Annual Data
Trend Dec16 Dec17 Dec18 Dec19 Dec20 Dec21 Dec22 Dec23 Dec24 Dec25
Piotroski F-Score
Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only 6.00 5.00 5.00 6.00 3.00

PBS Bhd Quarterly Data
Jun21 Sep21 Dec21 Mar22 Jun22 Sep22 Dec22 Mar23 Jun23 Sep23 Dec23 Mar24 Jun24 Sep24 Dec24 Mar25 Jun25 Sep25 Dec25 Mar26
Piotroski F-Score Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only 6.00 7.00 6.00 3.00 3.00

XKLS:5231 vs CTAS, CPRT, GPN: Piotroski F-Score Comparison

For the Specialty Business Services subindustry, PBS Bhd's Piotroski F-Score, along with its competitors' market caps and Piotroski F-Score data, can be viewed below:

* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.


PBS Bhd Piotroski F-Score vs Business Services Industry

For the Business Services industry and Industrials sector, PBS Bhd's Piotroski F-Score distribution charts can be found below:

* The bar in red indicates where PBS Bhd's Piotroski F-Score falls into.


How is the Piotroski F-Score calculated?

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

This Year (Mar26) TTM:Last Year (Mar25) TTM:
Net Income was 4.483 + 0.546 + -4.247 + -0.212 = RM0.57 Mil.
Cash Flow from Operations was -0.105 + -2.359 + -2.367 + 1.496 = RM-3.34 Mil.
Revenue was 3.08 + 4.2 + 2.449 + 1.58 = RM11.31 Mil.
Gross Profit was 3.08 + 4.2 + 2.449 + 1.58 = RM11.31 Mil.
Average Total Assets from the begining of this year (Mar25)
to the end of this year (Mar26) was
(141.357 + 143.985 + 143.658 + 131.956 + 125.885) / 5 = RM137.3682 Mil.
Total Assets at the begining of this year (Mar25) was RM141.36 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was RM0.83 Mil.
Total Current Assets was RM102.69 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was RM34.99 Mil.
Net Income was 0.623 + -4.202 + 1.951 + 0.092 = RM-1.54 Mil.

Revenue was 18.667 + 6.232 + 2.525 + 2.006 = RM29.43 Mil.
Gross Profit was 18.667 + 6.232 + 2.525 + 2.006 = RM29.43 Mil.
Average Total Assets from the begining of last year (Mar24)
to the end of last year (Mar25) was
(200.986 + 163.61 + 147.11 + 143.765 + 141.357) / 5 = RM159.3656 Mil.
Total Assets at the begining of last year (Mar24) was RM200.99 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was RM0.54 Mil.
Total Current Assets was RM119.36 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was RM3.68 Mil.

*Note: If the latest quarterly/semi-annual/annual total assets data is 0, then we will use previous quarterly/semi-annual/annual data for all the items in the balance sheet.

Profitability

Question 1. Return on Assets (ROA)

Net income before extraordinary items for the year divided by Total Assets at the beginning of the year.

Score 1 if positive, 0 if negative.

PBS Bhd's current Net Income (TTM) was 0.57. ==> Positive ==> Score 1.

Question 2. Cash Flow Return on Assets (CFROA)

Net cash flow from operating activities (operating cash flow) divided by Total Assets at the beginning of the year.

Score 1 if positive, 0 if negative.

PBS Bhd's current Cash Flow from Operations (TTM) was -3.34. ==> Negative ==> Score 0.

Question 3. Change in Return on Assets

Compare this year's return on assets (1) to last year's return on assets.

Score 1 if it's higher, 0 if it's lower.

ROA (This Year)=Net Income/Total Assets (Mar25)
=0.57/141.357
=0.00403234

ROA (Last Year)=Net Income/Total Assets (Mar24)
=-1.536/200.986
=-0.00764232

PBS Bhd's return on assets of this year was 0.00403234. PBS Bhd's return on assets of last year was -0.00764232. ==> This year is higher. ==> Score 1.

Question 4. Quality of Earnings (Accrual)

Compare Cash flow return on assets (2) to return on assets (1)

Score 1 if CFROA > ROA, 0 if CFROA <= ROA.

PBS Bhd's current Net Income (TTM) was 0.57. PBS Bhd's current Cash Flow from Operations (TTM) was -3.34. ==> -3.34 <= 0.57 ==> CFROA <= ROA ==> Score 0.

Funding

Question 5. Change in Gearing or Leverage

Compare this year's gearing (long-term debt divided by average total assets) to last year's gearing.

Score 0 if this year's gearing is higher, 1 otherwise.

Gearing (This Year: Mar26)=Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation/Average Total Assets from Mar25 to Mar26
=0.827/137.3682
=0.00602032

Gearing (Last Year: Mar25)=Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation/Average Total Assets from Mar24 to Mar25
=0.544/159.3656
=0.00341353

PBS Bhd's gearing of this year was 0.00602032. PBS Bhd's gearing of last year was 0.00341353. ==> Last year is lower than this year ==> Score 0.

Question 6. Change in Working Capital (Liquidity)

Compare this year's current ratio (current assets divided by current liabilities) to last year's current ratio.

Score 1 if this year's current ratio is higher, 0 if it's lower

Current Ratio (This Year: Mar26)=Total Current Assets/Total Current Liabilities
=102.686/34.989
=2.93480808

Current Ratio (Last Year: Mar25)=Total Current Assets/Total Current Liabilities
=119.36/3.678
=32.45241979

PBS Bhd's current ratio of this year was 2.93480808. PBS Bhd's current ratio of last year was 32.45241979. ==> Last year's current ratio is higher ==> Score 0.

Question 7. Change in Shares in Issue

Compare the number of shares in issue this year, to the number in issue last year.

Score 0 if there is larger number of shares in issue this year, 1 otherwise.

PBS Bhd's number of shares in issue this year was 603.205. PBS Bhd's number of shares in issue last year was 603.205. ==> There is smaller number of shares in issue this year, or the same. ==> Score 1.

Efficiency

Question 8. Change in Gross Margin

Compare this year's gross margin (Gross Profit divided by sales) to last year's.

Score 1 if this year's gross margin is higher, 0 if it's lower.

Gross Margin (This Year: TTM)=Gross Profit/Revenue
=11.309/11.309
=1

Gross Margin (Last Year: TTM)=Gross Profit/Revenue
=29.43/29.43
=1

PBS Bhd's gross margin of this year was 1. PBS Bhd's gross margin of last year was 1. ==> Last year's gross margin is higher ==> Score 0.

Question 9. Change in asset turnover

Compare this year's asset turnover (total sales for the year divided by total assets at the beginning of the year) to last year's asset turnover ratio.

Score 1 if this year's asset turnover ratio is higher, 0 if it's lower

Asset Turnover (This Year)=Revenue/Total Assets at the Beginning of This Year (Mar25)
=11.309/141.357
=0.08000311

Asset Turnover (Last Year)=Revenue/Total Assets at the Beginning of Last Year (Mar24)
=29.43/200.986
=0.14642811

PBS Bhd's asset turnover of this year was 0.08000311. PBS Bhd's asset turnover of last year was 0.14642811. ==> Last year's asset turnover is higher ==> Score 0.

Evaluation

Piotroski F-Score= Que. 1+ Que. 2+ Que. 3+Que. 4+Que. 5+Que. 6+Que. 7+Que. 8+Que. 9
=1+0+1+0+0+0+1+0+0
=3

Good or high score = 7, 8, 9
Bad or low score = 0, 1, 2, 3

PBS Bhd has an F-score of 3. It is a bad or low score, which usually implies poor business operation.

Frequently Asked Questions Learn more about Piotroski F-Score →
What does a Piotroski F-Score of 3 mean?
PBS Bhd (XKLS:5231) has a Piotroski F-Score of 3 as of Jun. 26, 2026. The Piotroski F-score grades a company's business operating strength from 0-9. View historical data on PBS Bhd and its competitors. This is 40% below median its historical median of 5.00. Over the past decade, PBS Bhd's Piotroski F-Score has ranged from 2.00 to 8.00. According to the industry distribution chart, PBS Bhd ranks #903 out of 1063 companies in the Business Services industry, placing it in the top 84.9%.
Is PBS Bhd's Piotroski F-Score too high?
PBS Bhd's current Piotroski F-Score of 3 is 40% below median its 10-year median of 5.00. Over the past 10 years, this metric has ranged from a low of 2.00 to a high of 8.00. The Business Services industry median Piotroski F-Score is 5.00. PBS Bhd's value of 3 is 40% below this industry median. Based on the distribution chart, PBS Bhd ranks #903 out of 1063 companies in the Business Services industry, which is in the bottom quartile relative to peers.
How does PBS Bhd's Piotroski F-Score compare to CTAS and CPRT?
According to the Business Services industry distribution chart, PBS Bhd ranks #903 out of 1063 companies for Piotroski F-Score. This places PBS Bhd in the lower half of its industry. The industry median Piotroski F-Score is 5.00. PBS Bhd's value of 3 is 40% below this benchmark. Historically, PBS Bhd's own Piotroski F-Score has ranged from 2.00 to 8.00 over the past decade. While the company's 10-year median is 5.00 vs. the industry median of 5.00, PBS Bhd has consistently been below the industry average. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Piotroski F-Score for a Business Services company?
The median Piotroski F-Score among Business Services companies is 5.00, based on 1,063 companies in the industry. Companies in the top quartile (top 25%) have a Piotroski F-Score significantly above this median, while those in the bottom quartile fall well below. However, Piotroski F-Score should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. PBS Bhd's current Piotroski F-Score of 3 is 40% below the industry median. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Piotroski F-Score mean?
A high Piotroski F-Score can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. The Piotroski F-score grades a company's business operating strength from 0-9. View historical data on PBS Bhd and its competitors. For the Business Services industry, the median Piotroski F-Score is 5.00 — values significantly above this may indicate overvaluation, while values below may suggest a bargain or underlying issues. PBS Bhd's current Piotroski F-Score is 3, which is 40% below median its own 10-year median of 5.00. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is PBS Bhd stock overvalued right now?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, PBS Bhd (XKLS:5231) is currently considered Significantly Overvalued. The stock's GF Value™ is RM0.06, compared to a current price of RM0.10 — trading 58.3% above its estimated fair value. The current Piotroski F-Score is 3, which is 40% below median its 10-year median of 5.00 and 40% below the Business Services industry median of 5.00. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Piotroski F-Score calculated?
Piotroski F-Score is calculated from a company's financial statements. For PBS Bhd (XKLS:5231), the current Piotroski F-Score is 3 as of Jun. 26, 2026. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.

PBS Bhd Business Description

Address No. 9, Jalan Pemaju U1/15, Unit A-10-02, Level 10, Empire Tower Office, Empire Subang, Subang Jaya, SGR, MYS, 47500
PBS Bhd is engaged in the distribution of stationery and office products and investment holding. The Group operates mainly as a distributor for the Pelikan brand and distributes Pelikan-branded Fine Writing and Stationery in Malaysia, Singapore, China/Taiwan, Thailand and Greece. The Group is organised into two main geographical units: Rest of the World and Asia.