SMIC profit jumps to P12 billion in Q1

MANILA, Philippines — SM Investments Corp.,  the listed conglomerate of the Sy Group, grew its first quarter net income by 27 percent to P12 billion.

The company raked in consolidated revenues of P112.1 billion, higher than the P96.9 billion  registered a year ago as the business environment continued to improve.

SMIC president and CEO Frederic DyBuncio said  while there are still headwinds, consumer confidence has been picking up.

“Our financial performance in the first quarter showed continued recovery momentum with accelerating revenue and net income growth. As a group we are delivering pre-pandemic performance, with strong recovery continuing in our businesses that were hardest hit by the pandemic,” he said.

Among the different businesses, banks accounted for 49 percent of SMIC’s  consolidated net income, followed by property with a contribution of 29 percent and retail at 16 percent. Portfolio investments contributed six percent.

“Our portfolio investments provide us good growth opportunities as we continue to look for further investments in high growth areas in the Philippines,” DyBuncio said, noting that Atlas Consolidated Mining and Development Corp. led the growth with a reported net income of P1.22 billion or up 191 percent.

SM Retail reported first-quarter revenues of P74.5 billion, six percent higher on the back of pent-up demand especially for non-food items since the fourth quarter of last year with the easing of alert levels. Overall, retail net income grew 61 percent to P2.6 billion from P1.6 billion the previous year.

SM Prime Holdings Inc.  reported a consolidated net income of  P7.4 billion in the first quarter, up 15 percent from P6.5 billion in the same period last year.

Consolidated revenues grew 15 percent to P23.9 billion.

BDO Unibank Inc., meanwhile, posted a 13 percent increase in net income to P11.7 billion,  driven by the bank’s core businesses.

China Banking Corp. and  its other banking business reported a net profit of P4.9 billion in the first quarter, 37 percent more compared to the same period last year.

SMIC recently approved the acquisition of Philippine Geothermal Production Co. at the annual shareholders’ meeting.  This  is in line with SM’s strong commitment to sustainability and in promoting renewable energy in the country.