Financial targets for 2022 ‘intact’ despite budget overrun, says PLDT

Embattled PLDT Inc. said on Thursday that its financial targets for the year remained intact despite the P48-billion budget overrun that had left investors jittery over the impact on the telco’s bottom line.

In a disclosure, PLDT said its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization was on track to reach P100 billion while core income is projected to hit P32.6 billion to P33 billion, in line with the full-year guidance.

The listed telco also said it expected to have the financial capacity to pay the balance of the regular dividend of P45 per share and the remaining special dividend of P42 apiece.

“This would bring total dividends for 2022 to P134 per share or 88 percent of 2022 expected earnings,” PLDT said.

Regina Capital Development Corp. head of sales Luis Limlingan told the Inquirer the disclosure extended some reprieve to PLDT stocks that had been battered since the market-moving disclosure of the overrun last Friday, noting that investors “have found the briefing [last Wednesday] satisfactory.”

“PLDT’s statement has helped in providing clarifications. Notifying the investors that the budget overrun was used to boost PLDT’s competitiveness in the telecommunications industry and not for anomalous transactions is seen to have helped in calming them,” Philstocks Financial Inc. senior research analyst Japhet Louis Tantiangco told the Inquirer.

PLDT shares managed to book some gains on Wednesday before dropping by 0.08 percent to P1,249 each. On Monday, PLDT dealt with its worst trading session since 1998 when its shares dropped by 19.35 percent, erasing about P62 billion in market value.

“However, they would need to bring in more details into the picture to address some overhanging concerns,” Limlingan said.

Law firms

Inquirer reported on Wednesday that several US law firms—Glancy Prongay & Murray LLP, The Schall Law Firm, Johnson Fistel LLP and Law Offices of Howard G. Smith—expressed intent to investigate PLDT for possible federal securities law violations on behalf of investors.

These law firms are reaching out to investors for potential class action suits after PLDT American Depositary Receipts dropped by more than 23 percent on Monday.

The Schall Law Firm said the probe would focus on “whether the company issued false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose information pertinent to investors.”

Inquirer sought comments, but PLDT has yet to give one.

Beginning next year, PLDT president and CEO Alfredo Panlilio said they intend to reduce fresh capital expenditure (capex).

“Thereafter, we expect capex to reduce steadily. 2023 will be a year of consolidation as we continue to strengthen and grow the business,” he said.

The telco giant programmed P85-billion capital outlays this year.

Panlilio reiterated the budget overrun involved the “procurement of network equipment necessary to provide stronger connectivity to subscribers, specifically 5G cell sites for our mobile network and fiber rollout.”

“There will be no write-off of these assets,” he added.