SBS earnings rise in six months

MANILA, Philippines - Chemical distribution firm SBS Philippines Corp. saw its net income surge to P910.7 million in the first half, buoyed by one-time gains from the disposal of its real estate investments.

Net sales reached P517 million, up 12.8 percent year on year.

Operating profit rose 18.9 percent to P113 million, driven by organic revenue growth, significant drop in finance charges on account of substantial debt pay downs, lowered operating expenses and higher income contributions from non-core assets.

The strong sales performance was attributed to strong volume growth in cosmetics and pharmaceutical raw materials, feeds, and industrial chemical segments as SBS delivered on its strategy to increase market penetration and grow its business volumes through increased sales activities in these segments.

Food ingredients continue to account for the bulk of the company’s sales at 35 percent, followed by industrial (32 percent), feeds (22 percent), and raw materials pharmaceuticals and cosmetics (11 percent).

SBS president and CEO Gerry Tan said robust economic growth also contributed to the firm’s strong performance.

 “The robust growth in the Philippine economy and the greater reliance of chemical manufacturers on third party distribution channels to access local customers continue to support our double-digit growth momentum for the year,” Tan said.

Tan said the company was able to pare down net debt to P373.7 million in the first half as the excess cash was used to reduce debt consisting mainly of short-term liabilities.

Necisto Sytengco, SBS chairman and founder,  said the company would continue to strengthen its balance sheet to reap the maximum benefit of the sales opportunities presented by the continuously improving economic prospects. 

“SBS remains totally focused to grow in value and will leverage its assets, prospects and organization to deliver this,” he said.