Monday, May 05, 2008 [ manilatimes.net ]
THE holding company of the Gatchalian group’s hotel business told the Philippine Stock Exchange that its profits last year rose on cuts in expenditures and extraordinary gains arising from electricity bill and tax refunds.
Based on its annual report, Waterfront Philippines Inc. said its net income jumped almost 9 times to P162.6 million year on year with revenues inching up by 2.6 percent to P1.96 billion.
During the 12-month period, the company trimmed its costs and expenses by almost 3 percent to P1.66 billion as depreciation and amortization dropped by P52.6 million and repairs and maintenance by almost P77 million. This pushed up the hotel operator’s gross income by 51 percent to P301.6 million.
The company’s other expenses dropped by P110 million to P206 million as its subsidiary Acesite (Phils.) Hotel Corp. collected a refund from Manila Electric Co. under the fourth phase of the utility’s refund scheme. This was on top of the reduction in interest payments and other charges.
In addition, Acesite filed a petition for the refund of value added tax (VAT) the hotel “erroneously” paid to the Bureau of Internal Revenue on its sale of food and services to and gross rentals from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor).
In February last year, the Supreme Court ruled that the tax bureau should refund the hotel P30.1 million, allowing Acesite to recognize the refund as part of its gross income on the year it received the tax credit certificate.
At end-December, Waterfront’s cash and cash equivalents rose by almost 16 percent to P65.8 million year on year. It said the “up hill struggle of sales” cut receivables by 24 percent to P152 million as the company “continues to counter the increased credit sales” while improving accounts collection. Current assets rose by 66 percent to P2 billion with short-term placements earning interest of 2 percent per annum.
The company’s current liabilities rose by 43 percent to P3.34 billion due to additional purchases with various suppliers while loans payable rose by 81 percent to P2 billion, representing loans from the Social Security System, Philippine National Bank and Industrial Commercial Bank of China – Singapore Branch.
Earlier, Waterfront said it plans to build a 2,500-room The Grand Waterfront hotel and casino in the The Bagong Nayong Pilipino-Manila Bay Integrated Tourism City. The company plans to tie up with a Macau-based partner for the project on a 5-hectare property it would lease from the government. Waterfront will own 40-percent of the hotel, with the cost of building seen reaching $1 billion. -- Likha C. Cuevas-Miel
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