By Iris C. Gonzales (The Philippine Star) Updated May 16, 2011 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - Megaworld Corp., the property developer owned by Andrew Tan, reported a first quarter net income of P1.25 billion, up 12 percent from the previous year, on back of the continued strength of its residential real estate sales and business process outsourcing office rental portfolios.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), Megaworld said that consolidated revenues amounted to P5.73 billion in the first three months of the year, up 23 percent from P4.65 billion recorded in the same period last year.
This as rental income from Megaworld’s BPO office and retail business grew to P809 million, up 36 percent from P596 million the year before.
Furthermore, the company said that remains in a strong net cash position, with cash and cash equivalents totaling P23.2 billion.
In its disclosure, Megaworld said that it is now the premier residential developer in the Philippines as it has pioneered the development of community townships that incorporate the live-work-play-learn concept.
At present, the company has seven ongoing projects within Metro Manila and San Juan.
“Megaworld was the first to develop an information technology park in the Philippines through its project in Eastwood City, which provides a 24x7 work environment to business process operations servicing the global market. With the success of Eastwood City, Megaworld expanded its portfolio to McKinley Hill, which is now home to some of the biggest names in the BPO industry,” it said.
In office development, Megaworld said it is currently the market leader and the largest BPO office landlord.
“At the end of 2010, the company had about to 384,000 square meters of office space in its portfolio. It is expected to complete another 78,000 square meters of space this year,” it also said.
Recently, Megaworld launched its Iloilo Business Park with an initial investment of P2.5 billion earmarked over the next two years to develop the road network within the 54.5-hectare information technology park and for the construction of Richmonde Hotel Iloilo and Richmonde Tower. The first retail component of the project, Festive Walk, will be completed in the latter part of 2012, after which Megaworld is set to invest more to bankroll the development until 2020, the company also said.
The Tan-owned company remains very bullish about the prospects of the Philippine economy, as well as the Philippine real estate industry. With total assets of over P100 billion, the company is in a strong position to pursue its goals as it continues to enhance its operating efficiency and profitability.
According to Megaworld senior vice president Francis Canuto strong residential sales and rental income have been driven by “the strength of the company’s business model.”
“On top of that, Megaworld has a proven track record in the industry as it has delivered more than 220 buildings to its customers over the last two decades,” it also said.
______________________________________________________________
