Cost surge offset Roxas Holdings’ sixfold sales hike

Listed sugar and ethanol producer Roxas Holdings Inc. (RHI) reported that its net income remained almost the same for its latest quarter ending December last year despite recording higher production and sales.

In a disclosure last week, RHI said its net income attributable to equity holders of the parent company reached P195.93 million from P194.91 million in the same period last year.

The company’s top line grew by nearly six-fold or 484.2 percent to P4.18 billion from P715.67 million, but its cost of sales significantly climbed by 488.79 percent to P4.14 billion.

Gross profit improved by 189.74 percent to P31.67 million yet operating expenses rose by 9.29 percent to P137.11 million.

RHI said they usually incur a loss at the beginning of its fiscal year due to “very limited transactions.”

“While San Carlos Bioenergy Inc.’s (SCBI) distillery operations started to stabilize in this quarter, Central Azucarera Don Pedro Inc. (Cadpi)’s refinery undertook its annual repairs and maintenance activities in November, after completing a short extended run to service its customers for the period,” said RHI chair Pedro Roxas.

“While our first quarter core net loss was flat, gross profit improved at P32 million for the first quarter brought about by the higher production and sale of ethanol produced from the early start of SCBI’s operations and its more efficient operations, as well as, an increase in the sale of refined sugar by Cadpi,” RHI president and CEO Celso Dimarucut said.

RHI is expecting its bottom line to improve in the succeeding periods as it is prepared to restart operations of its facilities in the second quarter.

It also wants to pare down its operating expenses. INQ