Eagle Cement profits plunge 44%
Eagle Cement Corporation (Eagle Cement) reported a 44 percent drop in net income to P3.4 billion last year from P6.0 billion in 2019.
This firm said in a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange that this came after a strong start in 2020 was disrupted by the implementation of lockdown measures in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic that began in mid-March of the year.
Eagle Cement reached full-year net sales of P13.9 billion, down by 30 percent from P19.8 billion it made a year ago, narrowing its 44 percent decline in the first half due to more relaxed restrictions in the second half of the year.
Despite the decline in the Company’s historically-strong numbers, Eagle Cement continued to outperform its listed peers’ average margins.
For the second semester of 2020, Eagle Cement generated net sales of nearly P8.0 billion, 14 percent lower compared to P9.3 billion in the same period in 2019 but 35 percent higher versus the first half of the same year.
“The halting of our operations due to pandemic-related restrictions took a hit on our results in the first half of 2020, but the remaining half proved that we are well-positioned to bounce back,” said Eagle Cement President Paul Ang.
He noted that, “We saw improvement in our volume and we are able to bring down our production cost in 2020. We will continue to work on aggressive marketing and better pricing strategies for this year and this will be complemented by focusing on cost control initiatives in our operations, which will enable us to deliver better returns in 2021.”
Eagle Cement said it remains in a solid financial position geared to prop the Company back to double-digit growth following the reopening of the economy and national vaccine rollouts.
“We continue to formulate and execute strategies that will keep us competitive amid different events affecting the market. We are hopeful for the ongoing national vaccination program and are eager to see all industries recover,” Ang said.
He added that, “We are prepared to cater to the market’s demand now and in the future with our expansion underway. Despite the pandemic, we also remain committed to uphold our corporate values for all of our stakeholders and extend help to them wherever possible.”