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Manila Bulletin devider Business devider The Stock Market devider Empire East boosts profits with lower finance costs

Empire East boosts profits with lower finance costs

Published May 4, 2026 12:00 am  |  Updated May 2, 2026 03:05 pm
Empire East President and CEO Charlemagne Yu
Empire East President and CEO Charlemagne Yu

Empire East Land Holdings Inc., the middle-income housing unit of Andrew Tan-led Megaworld Corp., reported a 2.6-percent improvement in consolidated net profit to ₱260.92 million in the first quarter of 2026 from ₱254.21 million during the same period last year.

The growth can be traced to lower finance costs and higher finance income as sales remained stable despite the weaker condominium market.

The firm disclosed to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) last week that its consolidated revenues, composed of real estate sales, finance income, commissions, and other income, increased by 3.5 percent to ₱1.6 billion in the first three months of 2026 from ₱1.55 billion a year ago.

The group reported flat real estate sales of ₱1.21 billion for the three months ended March 31, 2026 and 2025, derived from projects such as The Paddington Place, Mango Tree Residences, The Cambridge Village, Covent Garden, Pioneer Woodlands, California Garden Square, The Sonoma, The Rochester Garden, and Greenhills Garden Square.

The cost of real estate sales declined to ₱656.72 million in 2026 from ₱682.79 million in 2025, accounting for 54.5 percent and 56.7 percent of real estate sales, respectively.

“The change was primarily due to the different composition of products sold during each period,” Empire East said.

Gross profit rose to ₱548.66 million in 2026 from ₱522.39 million in 2025, translating to margins of 45.5 percent and 43.3 percent, respectively. The gross profit margin varies depending on the product mix and pricing competitiveness.

The firm’s finance income amounted to ₱103.55 million in 2026, lower than the ₱218.9 million in 2025.

This was derived mostly from the financing component of buyers’ contracts, in-house financing, short-term placements, and advances to related parties, which accounted for 6.5 percent and 14.2 percent of total revenues in 2026 and 2025, respectively.

Additional sources of revenue included commissions from a subsidiary, rentals of investment properties, and other income streams.

Commission and other income totaled ₱291.45 million in 2026, up from ₱121.71 million in 2025, representing 18.2 percent and 7.9 percent of total revenues, respectively.

Operating expenses (opex) increased to ₱513.82 million in 2026 from ₱405.83 million in 2025. Meanwhile, finance cost declined to ₱77.95 million from ₱114.75 million over the same period.

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