Posted on November
29, 2012 10:29:01 PM [ BusinessWorld Online ]
HOLDING FIRM
Republic Glass Holdings Corp. has moved to sell its two-hectare property in
Quezon City to real estate developer Robinsons Land Corp., which in turn may
transform the lot into a future mixed-use project. “Republic Glass today (Nov. 28) announced
that it signed with Robinsons Land an agreement under the terms of which
Republic Glass will sell its two-hectare property in Libis, Quezon City,” the
holding firm said in a disclosure yesterday.
The transaction was
confirmed by Robinsons Land in a separate disclosure yesterday.
PLANS
“We are building a
mixed-use development in the Republic Glass property,” Roseann C. Villegas,
Robinsons Land director for corporate public relations, said further in a text
message yesterday when asked about the Gokongwei-led developer’s plans for the
property.
She was unable to
elaborate, however, stating for instance that “the purchase value was not
disclosed.”
The property sale to
Robinsons Land will take place in tranches over two years, Republic Glass
explained in its disclosure yesterday.
“The sale shall be
on installment basis with payments to be made over two years,” the holding
company said without elaborating.
The Libis property,
which measures 20,000 square meters (sq. m.) consisting of a lot and warehouse,
is currently in “good condition” and is being leased out to an undisclosed
group, according to the company’s end-September financial report.
Republic Glass earns
approximately P1.5 million per month in rental income from its Libis property,
Geronimo F. Velasco, Jr., Republic Glass president and vice-chairman, had said
at the firm’s annual stockholders’ meeting last April.
The company has
recently been disposing of its assets located in various locations nationwide.
Last April, Republic
Glass completed the sale of a 191,905 sq. m. vacant lot in Batangas to
construction firm Atlantic, Gulf & Pacific Co. of Manila, Inc. for P347
million.
Aside from its
Batangas and Quezon City properties, the company also holds parcels of land in
Cagayan de Oro City, Tagaytay City, and Palawan for future development or
disposal.
Republic Glass was
incorporated in 1956 as Republic Glass Corp., a manufacturer and supplier of flat
glass. It spun off its glass operations in 1990 to form Republic-Asahi Glass
Corp. in a joint venture with Japan-based Asahi Glass Co. Ltd.
Since 2001, Republic
Glass has been engaged primarily in the purchase and sale of government and
corporate investment-grade bonds and money market placements.
In the near term the
holding company said it will continue to seek and assess possibilities for
strategic alliances with other firms.
Republic Glass more
than doubled its net income to P143.79 million as of September from P57.78
million in the same nine months last year.
In the same
comparative periods, revenues fell 6.11% to P49.76 million from P53 million,
while general and administrative expenses fell 4.92% to P22.04 million from
P23.18 million.
“The improvement in
net income was, to a large extent, the result of gain from sale of investment
properties of P109.94 million and from mark-to-market gain on financial assets
at fair value… of P35.64 million compared to P47.35-million loss posted same
period last year,” the company said in its end-September financial report.
Mr. Velasco said
last April that Republic Glass expected the return of one-time gains that were
absent last year to boost its 2012 net income following a double-digit drop in
its 2011 earnings to P78.93 million. He did not elaborate.
Shares of Republic
Glass added 18 centavos or 8.11% to P2.40 apiece yesterday from P2.22 last
Wednesday, while those of Robinsons Land were traded unchanged at P19.00
apiece. -- Franz Jonathan G. de la Fuente
___________________________________________________________
