FDC income jumps 45% to P7.19B in H1

By VG Cabuag - August 16, 2018

https://businessmirror.com.ph/fdc-income-jumps-45-to-p7-19b-in-h1/

FILINVEST Development Corp. (FDC), the holding firm of the Gotianun family, said its income jumped by close to half to P7.19 billion during the first half of the year, from last year’s P4.97 billion.

Its property business made a significant contribution to the increase.

Revenues grew 15 percent to P32.73 billion, from last year’s P28.45 billion.

The majority of revenues, or 44 percent, came from the property business, which includes both the real estate and hotel groups.

Banking contributed 38 percent, power 11 percent and sugar 6 percent.

“The property segment was the main contributor to the group’s formidable growth,” it said.

For the second quarter alone, FDC’s income rose 70 percent to P4.37 billion, up from last year’s P2.56 billion.

Revenues rose 23 percent to P17.06 billion from last year’s P13.8 billion.

Banking subsidiary East West Bank’s income fell 11 percent in the first half to P2.2 billion due to the lower-than-expected results of its unit EastWest Rural Bank.

“The bank continues to be strong in the consumer segment where it has the third-largest car-loan portfolio and the fifth-largest credit-card portfolio,” said Jonathan T. Gotianun, FDC chairman.

FDC Utilities Inc., FDC’s power subsidiary, also made a contribution to the group’s income as its 405-megawatt coal power plant in Misamis Oriental saw higher demand from customers.

Its main power asset reported a 33-percent growth in regular energy sales to Mindanao distribution utilities from the same period last year.

Property values increased in Filinvest City, the 244-hectare property in Alabang, due to the accelerated buildup in the estate, where gross floor area increased by 45 percent since the end of 2014.

Higher hotel revenues were the result of improved occupancy rates across all hotel properties, as well as increased revenues from Mimosa Golf Clark, it said.

Filinvest Hospitality Corp. has four properties in its portfolio, or 1,591 rooms under both the Crimson and Quest brands. When the island of Boracay is reopened to visitors in the last quarter of 2018, it will launch Crimson Resort and Spa Boracay, which will add another 192 rooms. The group now has 1,700 additional rooms in the planning and construction stages across eight new hotels, including two additional Quest properties in Tagaytay and San Mateo.

With its share of the 201-hectare Filinvest Mimosa+ Leisure Estate, the former Clark Mimosa Estate, FDC said it is poised to take a strong position in the leisure-development arena. Under its unit Mimosa Cityscapes Inc., the group has a provisional license granted by the Philippine Gaming and Amusement Corp. for a casino integrated resort in Filinvest Mimosa+.  More than $200 million has been allotted to the project, which includes a casino, shopping mall, five-star hotel and events venue.

“We believe our investments in power and infrastructure can yield returns that balance out our more cyclical business segments. Steady and stable revenues from the rental, power, sugar and infrastructure sectors will help to smooth out the waxing and waning of the business cycle. In addition, investing in airport infrastructure will complement our projects in hospitality and BPO rental properties,” FDC President and CEO Josephine Gotianun Yap said.