Cebu Landmasters nets P634M

CLI’s Casa Mira housing project

Newly-listed property developer Cebu Landmasters Inc. booked a 164-percent jump in first semester net profit to P634 million on higher earnings unlocked from its residential development projects.

This shows a “positive outlook” for the company to surpass its P1.2-billion net income target for the full year, CLI said in a press statement on Wednesday.

Six-month revenues surged by 107 percent year-on-year to P1.81 billion while profit margins increased to 51 percent from 46 percent due to moderate price escalations and cost control procedures.

As an indicator of future revenue growth, CLI’s reservation sales were up by 155 percent year-on-year to P2.84 billion, almost breaching the entire 2016 sales figure of P2.95 billion. This was generated from projects launched in the first semester, such as: premium residential development 38 Park Avenue at the Cebu IT Park (60 percent fully sold); MesaTierra Garden Residences in Davao (85 percent fully sold); and Casa Mira South straddling in the City of Naga and Municipality of San Fernando, Cebu (80 percent fully sold).

CLI chief executive officer Jose Soberano said: “We’re proud to be a homegrown VisMin (Visayas-Mindanao) brand that has captured the needs and preferences of our target market as reflected in the sales velocity of our developments.”

“We have also leveraged on our deep relations with our business partners and suppliers to ensure that our constructions progress as scheduled. We’re highly aware that meeting our commitments to our buyers on time has a great impact on our bottom-line and the strength of our brand,” he said.

Soberano attributed this growth to the robust sales and strong construction progress of various projects such as economic residential condominium Casa Mira Towers, mid-end residential condominium developments Mivesa Garden Residences and Mesaverte Residences (Cagayan de Oro), mixed-use development Baseline Center including the Citadines Cebu City to be completed in 2018. Except for Mesaverte Residences, all aforementioned projects are in Cebu.

CLI reported fast turnaround time in most of its projects, from acquisition to pre-selling and construction, attributed to its ability to cultivate strong partnerships with local contractors and other local stakeholders.

The company’s balance sheet is seen largely geared to support this expansion. Total assets recorded in the first six months of the year reached P8.9 billion versus only P5.4 billion a year ago. Proceeds from the recent initial public offering and growth in receivables due to the robust sales performance of its properties helped in beefing up CLI’s asset profile.