AMID the continuing impact of the global pandemic, property giant Megaworld Corp. has posted a total income of P2.5 billion during the first quarter of the year.
The country’s largest developer of integrated urban townships also had an attributable income of P2.4 billion during the same period last year.
Consolidated revenues reached P10.1 billion, but netting out the impact of interest and other income, the company’s core revenues registered at P9.3 billion.
This reflects a quarter-on-quarter growth of 10 percent due to improvements in the performance of the company’s real estate sales, as well as revenues from Megaworld Lifestyle Malls and Megaworld Hotels.
This marked the third consecutive quarter of improvement in the firm’s core revenues since the second quarter of 2020.
Megaworld chief strategy officer Kevin Tan, in a press statement, said that, gradually, they already see improvements in the numbers, which is a reflection of the recovery in most of our core businesses.
“With the eased restrictions and the increasing number of Filipinos getting vaccinated, we see better quarters ahead,” he added.
The firm reported that its real estate sales for the first three months of 2021 amounted to P5.9 billion, which decreased by 39 percent year-on-year.
However, this reflects a two percent improvement from the previous quarter due to increased construction activities.
Reservation sales also went up by 16 percent quarter-on-quarter to P20.7 billion, slightly higher than the P20.5 billion achieved during the same period last year.
Rental revenues decreased by 27 percent to P3.1 billion during the first quarter of the year compared to P4.2 billion during the same period last year.
However, rentals from Megaworld Lifestyle Malls slightly increased by two percent quarter-on-quarter as a result of the company’s digital transformation and innovations for al fresco dining.
“Our office business remains to be very stable and strong. For the first quarter of the year alone, we have already renewed more than 40 percent of our expiring leases for the year,” Tan said.
Hotel revenues also declined by 39 percent, to P335 million from P551 million, during the same period last year due to travel restrictions.
However, compared to the previous quarter, Megaworld Hotels posted a seven percent increase in revenues, boosted by bookings from in-city hotels.
As of March 31, 2021, Megaworld recorded cash reserves amounting to P32.6 billion and a net debt-to-equity ratio of 27 percent.
Megaworld currently has 26 master-planned integrated urban townships, integrated lifestyle communities, and lifestyle estates across the country.
These include 34-hectare The Upper East and 50-hectare Northill Gateway in cities of Bacolod and Talisay in Negros Occidental.