Thursday, May 08, 2008 [ manilatimes.net ]
By Likha C. Cuevas-Miel, Reporter
AYALA Land Inc.(ALI) announced on Wednesday that its first-quarter profit jumped on the back of higher revenues from its residential and construction businesses.
ALI disclosed that its net income for the period grew by 42 percent to P1.83 billion year on year as consolidated revenues climbed by 28 percent to P8.23 billion. Operating revenues also increased by 34 percent to P7.08 billion on the back of strong growth from both residential and construction businesses.
Its other segments like shopping centers, corporate business and strategic land bank management also helped lift revenues, “more than offsetting the decline in equity in net earnings and other income.”
Besides higher operating revenues, ALI also registered higher interest and investment income as it sold shares in three subsidiaries to competitor Megaworld Corp. The sale of Piedmont Property Ventures, Inc., Stonehaven Land Inc. and Streamwood Property Inc. more than doubled ALI’s pre-tax gains to P762 million at end-March. Last year, it earned P332 million by selling Makati Property Ventures, the operator of Oakwood serviced apartments.
Residential development accounted for 42 percent or P3.5 billion of total revenues, followed by support businesses at 25 percent or P2 billion. Shopping malls contributed 13 percent or P1 billion of total revenues while corporate business generated 3 percent or P272 million. Strategic land bank management contributed 3 percent or P210 million, followed by Visayas-Mindanao with P22 million or less than 1 percent. The balance of 14 percent came from ALI’s interest and other income.
Residential revenues grew 19 percent to P3.5 billion, as middle-income developers Community Innovations (CII) and Avida posted double-digit growth rates of 25 percent and 37 percent, respectively. Despite the US economic slowdown, Ayala Land Premier’s (ALP) revenues still rose by 9 percent to P1.7 billion
Shopping centers generated revenues of P1 billion, 6 percent higher than a year ago as average building occupancy rate stood at 92 percent even with the growth in gross leasable area to 886,000 from 678,000 square meters in the same three-month period last year. However, this was offset partially by the closure of Glorietta 2 and Park Square 2 in the fourth quarter last year.
Revenues from ALI’s corporate business grew by 17 percent to P272 million with the sale of three hectares at Laguna Technopark’s expansion phase, higher office occupancy and average rental rates and higher fee income from managed buildings.
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