Taipan Lucio Tan’s investment holding company LT Group Inc. (LTG) reported a six percent dip in attributable net income to P19.25 billion for the first nine months of 2023 from the P20.41 billion earned in the same period last year due to a drop in profits from its tobacco business.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), the firm said its tobacco business accounted for 47 percent of earnings while Philippine National Bank contributed 40 percent.
Tanduay Distillers Inc. added six percent, while Asia Brewery and Eton Properties Philippines Inc. accounted for two percent each. LTG’s stake in Victorias Milling Company added one percent while Other Income accounted for two percent.
The tobacco business’ net income for the first nine months of 2023 was P9.06 billion, 25 percent lower than the P12.04 billion registered in the comparative period last year.
The industry’s volume was 20 percent lower year-on-year (y-o-y) in the first nine months of 2023 at 32.2 billion sticks, largely due to the industry-wide price increase in the first quarter of 2023, increasing illicit incidence and trade inventory movements.
The government continued its efforts against the illicit trade with 505 enforcement in the first nine months of 2023, compared to 235 in the same period of 2022.
PNB’s net profit under the pooling method was P13.52 billion in the first three quarters of 2023, 18 percent higher than the P11.49 billion in the comparative period last year.
The 2023 profit included a P3.72 billion gain from the sale of repossessed assets, compared to P5.47 billion in 2022.
Loans and receivables were slightly lower at P611 billion as of September 2023 compared to P621 billion as of September 2022. However, net interest margin improved to four percent from 3.3 percent, causing net interest income to improve by 23 percent to P33.04 billion from P26.78 billion.
Net service fees and commission income were 21 percent higher at P4.29 billion from P3.55 billion.
The bank booked provisions for credit losses of P5.15 billion in the first nine months of 2023, substantially higher than the P714 million for the same period of 2022.
Tanduay’s net income amounted to P1.15 billion in the period under review, 34 percent higher than the P860 million posted for the first nine months of 2022.
Both the volume of liquor and bioethanol were lower y-o-y, at 10 percent and 32 percent, respectively.
Liquor revenues were relatively flat y-o-y due to price increases in October 2022 and in January 2023 and gross profit margin improved as this enabled TDI to pass on increased raw material and energy costs.
Asia Brewery’s net income for the first nine months of 2023 was P449 million, five percent higher than the P428 million in 2022.
Revenues were three percent higher at P12.79 billion from P12.43 billion on the back of higher volume for bottled water and price increases across product lines.
Eton’s net income for the first nine months of 2023 was P347 million, four percent higher than the P335 million for the same period in 2022. This was on the back of a 17 percent increase in leasing revenues to P1.53 billion from P1.30 billion.