MANILA -Billionaire Manuel Villar Jr.’s Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc. saw profits surge during the first semester of the year mainly due to a P1.8-billion one-time insurance claim after a fire damaged its property.
Net income from January to June this year soared 83 percent to P5.3 billion versus the same period last year, a regulatory filing on Monday showed. Without the impact of non-recurring income, earnings during the period would have reached P4.2 billion, slightly lower than the same period in 2022.
Vista Land said in a previous filing this year it was in talks “for additional claims from various insurance companies for the loss from fire in Starmall Alabang.
Meanwhile, total revenues reached P18.3 billion, up 8 percent, the filing showed.
“We are pleased with our performance for the first semester of 2023 as we have sustained our growth trajectory for the year. We have been launching more projects this year compared to last year. These launches will form part of our huge project pipeline,” said Vista Land chair Manuel Villar Jr.
READ: Villar’s Vista Land upbeat for 2023 as it builds on last year’s achievements
The developer added on Monday it launched a total of P24.3 billion worth of projects during the period. It underscored higher margins of 59 percent, up 300 basis points.
Total real estate revenues during the semester ended at P8 billion while rental income reached P7.9 billion, the filing showed.
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“We continue to deliver improvements in our residential business while our leasing business sustained its growth momentum for the period, Manuel Paolo A. Villar, president and CEO of Vista Land, said on Monday.
“Our strategy of maximizing our prime land is ongoing implementation, as we have been launching more Vista Estates across the country,” he said.
“These developments are mostly vertical and commercial projects which are geared towards the higher end of the income spectrum demand,” he added.