Robinsons Retail Holdings, Inc. (RRHI) reported a 24.8 percent growth in attributable net income to P1.2 billion in the first quarter of 2022 from P945 million in the same period last year.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, the firm said earnings per share increased at a faster clip by 29.2% due to the ongoing share buyback program of the company.

RRHI said the profit expansion was driven by double-digit topline growth and improved margins. Net sales climbed 10.7 percent to ₱39.4 billion, with positive contribution from all its business segments.

The company said it benefited from its diversified formats amid the imposition of different alert levels, with strong performance from essentials and double-digit sales growth of non- discretionary formats.

Meanwhile, e-commerce sales remained to be in a growth pattern, which doubled compared to the first quarter of 2021 and contributed 4.1 percent of total sales.

Same store sales growth (SSSG) was at 4.9 percent. Drugstore, department store and specialty store segments delivered double-digit SSSG, given increased economic activity resulting from eased restrictions starting February.

Gross profit improved by 11.3 percent to P9.1 billion with better product mix and higher vendor support. EBITDA expanded by 18.7 percent to P3.4 billion, lifted by positive SSSG and supported by operating efficiency improvements across most segments.

“The strong first quarter performance validates our optimism entering 2022. We saw upbeat performance across our formats in the first quarter of 2022 as consumers regained greater mobility to visit stores and grew even more accustomed to online shopping,” said RRHI President & CEO Robina Gokongwei Pe.

She added that “For the rest of the year, we are hopeful that the re-opening story we have been waiting for will be more apparent, with the resumption of face-to-face classes and return of more employees to on-site work arrangement.”

“We also anticipate the presidential elections to boost spending. While rising inflation could lead to down trading, we expect this to be offset by pent-up demand with consumers being more inclined to spend as the economy opens up,” Pe said.