Ayala Land’s Q1 net profit up 19% to P4.1B

LOCAL property giant Ayala Land Inc. grew its first quarter net profit by 19-percent year-on-year to P4.1 billion on the back of a double-digit growth across its property development and commercial leasing businesses.

ALI reported to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Wednesday that three-month consolidated revenues had risen by 10 percent to P25.1 billion as the company unlocked more values from its property development and commercial leasing operations in the company’s growing number of integrated, mixed-use estates nationwide.

“Our first quarter results provide a good takeoff point towards the achievement of our targets for the year.  We continue to introduce new estates and products in various geographies that will allow for sustained growth in 2015,” said ALI president Bernard Vincent Dy.

In a press briefing on Wednesday, Dy said ALI was on track with ALI’s “Vision 2020” – the goal of growing annual revenues by 20 percent each year to hit an annual level of P40 billion by the year 2020.

Property development, which includes the sale of residential lots and units, office spaces, as well as commercial and industrial lots, reported revenues of P15.9 billion in the first quarter, 18 percent higher year-on-year. At the same time, revenues from the residential business reached P13.1 billion, 18 percent higher year-on-year, driven by completed projects and a strong sales push across residential brands.

Various residential brands contributed revenues as follows:

– Ayala Land Premier, which caters to the luxury segment, posted earnings of P5.8 billion from substantial sales in high-value lots and condominium units. These include The Courtyards in Cavite and Arbor Lanes in Arca South;

– Alveo, which caters to the upscale market, posted P3 billion in revenues due to the contribution of its new and existing projects such as Verve Residences and Maridien in BGC, Veranda in Arca South,and Solinea in Cebu Avida, which serves the middle-income market segment, reported P2.7 billion in total revenues from sales in its various Avida Towers and Avida Settings projects;

– Affordable brand Amaia posted revenues of P783 million driven by sales of Amaia Steps in Nuvali and Amaia Skies in Avenida; and,

– BellaVita, which provides socialized housing to a broader segment, posted P80 million in revenues from projects in General Trias, Alaminos and Pililia.

As an indicator of future growth, reservation sales in the first quarter amounted to P23.4 billion, equivalent to an average monthly sales take-up of P7.8 billion. This marked a steady growth of 10 percent over last year’s level.

Commercial Leasing, which includes the operation of shopping centers, offices as well as hotels and resorts, generated total revenues of P5.9 billion, 11 percent higher than the P5.3 billion recorded in the same period last year.

Revenues from shopping centers grew by 11 percent year-on-year to P3.2 billion from P2.8 billion due to higher occupancy and increasing foot traffic in new malls Fairview Terraces and UP Town Center. Additionally, revenues from office leasing operations increased by 14 percent to P1.2 billion due to contribution of new offices, higher occupancy and higher average rental of existing offices.

The hotels and resorts business grew revenues by 9 percent year-on-year to P1.5 billion from P1.4 billion in the first quarter, primarily driven by the higher occupancy of its existing hotels and resorts.

Meanwhile, ALI’s wholly-owned Makati Development Corp. and Ayala Property Management Corp. generated combined revenues of P9.3 billion during the first three months of the year, 24 percent higher than the level posted in the same period in 2014.