LT Group’s profits decline to P13 B

Taipan Lucio Tan’s investment arm LT Group Inc. reported a 16 percent drop in attributable net income for the first half of 2023 to P13 billion from the P15.40 billion earned in the same period last year.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, the firm said its tobacco business accounted for 45 percent of earnings while Philippine National Bank contributed 42 percent.

***LT Group Inc. President Lucio Tan III***

Tanduay Distillers Inc. added five percent, Asia Brewery provided three percent, Eton Properties Philippines, Inc. and Victorias Milling Company each contributed two percent, while Other Income accounted for one percent.

The tobacco business’ net income for the first half of 2023 was P5.85 billion, 25 percent lower than the P7.77 billion in the same period last year.

The industry’s volume was 20 percent lower year-on-year in the first semester of 2023 at 21.3 billion sticks, largely due to the industry-wide price increase in the first quarter of 2023, increasing illicit incidence and trade inventory movements.

PNB’s net profit under the pooling method was P9.76 billion, 12 percent lower than last year’s P11.15 billion. This year’s profit included a P2.93 billion gain from the sale of repossessed assets, compared to P5.25 billion in the first half of 2022.

Tanduay’s net income for the first half of 2023 amounted to P626 million, 11 percent more than the P564 million reported in the first half of 2022.

Both the volume of liquor and bioethanol were lower year-on-year, at 14 percent and 35 percent, respectively, the latter due to the closure of Asian Alcohol Corporation in October 2022.

As TDI implemented an P84 per case price increase in November 2022, liquor revenues were only lower by four percent year on year to P10.96 billion despite the 14 percent drop in volume.

Asia Brewery’s net income for the first six months of 2023 was P340 million, 16 percent higher than the P294 million last year as revenues were three percent higher at P8.41 billion from P8.14 billion on the back of higher volumes for Cobra energy drink and bottled water.

Eton’s net income for the first half of 2023 was P206 million, 20 percent lower than the same period in 2022. Leasing revenues were eight percent higher at P960 million from P886 million.

Eton currently has a leasing portfolio of around 287,600 square meters, of which close to 192,000 is for office space.

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The article was originally published in Manila Bulletin and written by James A. Loyola.