Net earnings of Ayala Corp. rise 10% to P7.7 B in Q1
Published May 11, 2018 12:00 am
By James A. Loyola
Ayala Corporation, the country’s oldest conglomerate, reported a 10 percent improvement in net income to P7.7 billion in the first quarter of the year, lifted by the robust earnings growth of its real estate and power units.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, the firm said equity earnings from its business units grew nine percent to reach P9.2 billion, boosted by contributions of Ayala Land, which jumped 15 percent as well as AC Energy, which nearly doubled during the period.
“The sustained growth momentum in our portfolio reflects the progress we have made in our long-term diversification strategy to establish new pillars of growth and expand into new markets,” Ayala President and Fernando Zobel de Ayala said.
Zobel added that, “while we remain positive about the domestic environment and the concentration of our investments will continue to be in the Philippines, we are establishing a growing presence regionally and globally in sectors where we can bring our expertise and capital as opportunities arise.”
Ayala Land sustained its earnings momentum in the first quarter, with net income climbing 17 percent to P6.5 billion from a year ago primarily driven by its residential and commercial leasing segments.
Bank of the Philippine Islands recorded a net income of P6.2 billion in the first quarter, a flat growth from the previous year while Globe Telecom earned P4.7 billion in the first quarter.
Manila Water’s earnings jumped 17 percent to P1.7 billion on improved performance of the Manila Concession and domestic business units combined with lower depreciation expense.
AC Energy nearly doubled its net profits in the first quarter of the year to P593 million, boosted by robust contributions of its Indonesia investment and thermal and renewable platforms.
AC Industrials’ net income dropped 36 percent to R217 million in the first quarter despite strong topline growth of both its electronics manufacturing and vehicle retails segments, weighed down by a one-off expense and startup costs of new acquisitions.