Vista Land & Lifescapes, Inc. of billionaire Manuel B. Villar Jr. reported a 10 percent growth in net income to P9.1 billion for the nine months of 2024 from the P8.2 billion earned in the same period last year.
One of the Philippines’ leading integrated property developers and the country’s largest homebuilder, Vista Land said it launched new projects nationwide with a total value of P32.6 billion during the period.
The company reported consolidated revenues of P29.1 billion, a seven percent increase compared to the previous period with real estate revenue accounting for P13.6 billion, a 12 percent increase, while rental income reached P12.4 billion.
Vista Land’s gross profit totaled P9.0 billion, and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) amounted to P17.0 billion. Notably, Vista Land improved its gross margin to 66 percent, reflecting enhanced operational efficiency.
“Our performance so far reflects our commitment to our set strategy of asset maximization and optimization as we capitalized on the strong demand from residential projects specifically outside Metro Manila where we have the widest coverage,” said Vista Land Founder and Chairman Manuel B. Villar Jr.
He noted that, “Our presence in 147 cities and municipalities across the country became apparent when we saw softening demand in Metro Manila due to the effect of the POGO ban.
“We are now reaping the fruits of our various Vista Estate projects across the country, which is one of the factors in the sustained growth in our reservation sales which amounted to P58.4 billion as the end of period.”
Villar added that, “.”We remain optimistic with the industry especially in the provincial areas where demand continue to rise.
Vista Land President and CEO Manuel Paolo A Villar said "Vista Land is reinforcing its position in both the residential and commercial sectors. Our residential business has sustained its growth with real estate revenues delivering 12 percent growth for the period.
“We have also seen steady growth in our 1.6 million square meters gross floor area of commercial portfolio which includes 42 malls, 59 commercial centers and 7 office buildings as foot traffic returns to pre pandemic levels and we anticipate that we will see more in the coming Holiday season.”
On November 14, 2024, Vista Land’s Board of Directors approved the declaration of cash dividends, set to be paid at P0.1120 per share, amounting to P1.42 billion to stockholders on record as of November 28, 2024. These dividends will be distributed on December 12, 2024.
The higher dividend payout for 2024 was primarily due to the strong performance of the Company’s residential business.
The Company also announced that it plans to resume to its dividend policy of 20 percent of prior year’s net income next year as the residential business sustained its growth for 2024.
“In terms of our liability management activities, we have successfully refinanced our upcoming $350 million maturity last August with the issuance of a new Dollar Notes due 2029 and the proceeds was used to pay the $350 million dollar notes in October thus removing the significant refinancing risk from our balance sheet,” the CEO added.
Villar noted that, “We are done with the 2029 dollar notes issuance what we will be looking at next year is a liability management exercise for our dollar notes maturing in 2027.”
For the first nine months of 2024, the Company continues to maintain a strong financial position, offering substantial flexibility to adapt to market fluctuations and take advantage of emerging opportunities in the real estate sector.
The Company reported total assets of P376.8 billion and equity of P138.8 billion by the end of the period, yielding a net debt-to-equity ratio of 83 percent. This solid financial standing underscore the Vista Land’s ability to navigate challenges and capitalize on growth.
Capital expenditures totaled P21.2 billion, accounting for 71 percent of its 2024 budget. Of this amount, 70 percent was allocated to project construction, 28 percent to land development, and two pecent to land acquisition, underscoring its commitment to driving growth and expansion.