[ manilstandardtoday.com ] May 18, 2010
Robinsons Land Corp. and Universal Robina Corp., two units owned by the Gokongwei group, registered higher profits in the first six months ending March 31 this year.
Robinsons Land, the second-biggest developer, said in a filing with the Philippine Stock Exchange that net profit rose 10 percent year-on-year to P1.79 billion after combined real estate and hotel revenues climbed 7 percent to P5.3 billion from P4.9 billion.
Universal Robina, the largest producer of snacks, said in a separate filing that net profit in the six-month period jumped 982 percent to P4.35 billion from P402 million on year. Consolidated sale of goods and services grew 11.8 percent to P28.72 billion.
Robinsons Land’s commercial centers division contributed 50 percent or P2.8 billion to the company’s gross revenues, up 38 percent.
Robinsons Land said newly-opened malls in Dumaguete City, Ilocos Norte, General Santos, Tacloban and Davao helped in raising revenues. Metro Manila malls, led by Robinsons Galleria in the Ortigas commercial district, also contributed to the growth while other provincial stores posted decent growth in rental fees.
The company’s residential division accounted for 29 percent of total sales. Realized revenues declined 22 percent to P1.62 billion due to lower completion of several projects.
The office buildings division contributed 10 percent or P562 million of the company’s revenues, up 12 percent from last year’s P503 million.
The hotels division accounted for 10 percent or P578.5 million to Robinsons Land’s revenues, up 6 percent, after the opening of Summit Ridge Tagaytay Hotel.
Universal Robina, meanwhile, plans spending up to P4 billion in capital expenditure this year to finance expansion of overseas and domestic businesses.
URC president and chief operating officer Lance Gokongwei earlier said the company planned to add two beverage lines in Vietnam, one in Ho Chi Minh and the other in Hanoi. The expansion will increase total beverage production in Vietnam by 70 percent.
The company is also expanding snacks line in Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.
Universal Robina is involved in a wide range of food-related businesses, including the manufacture and distribution of branded consumer foods, production of hogs and day-old chicks, manufacture of animal and fish feeds, glucose and veterinary compounds, flour milling, and sugar milling and refining.
It is a dominant player with leading market shares in savory snacks, candies and chocolates and biscuits. Jenniffer B. Austria
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