Forbes cites 3 PH firms among ‘Best under a Billion’

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MANILA, Philippines — Three Philippine companies joined Forbes magazine’s 2024 list of 200 “Best Under A Billion” publicly traded companies in the Asia-Pacific that posted impressive growth despite the inflation onslaught worldwide.

The annual list that selected—not ranked—top-performing listed firms in the region with annual sales above $10 million and below $1 billion included Far Eastern University (FEU) of the Montinola clan, Philippine Bank of Communications (PBCom) of retail tycoon Lucio Co, and SSI Group of the Tantoco family.

READ: Villar, 15 other PH tycoons land on Forbes’ 2024 billionaires list

The Philippine firms that appeared last year but were not on the 2024 list were Cityland Development Corp., D&L Industries Inc. and Wilcon Depot.

High performers

From a pool of more than 20,000 companies, Forbes said the list puts a spotlight on few high-performing firms with a track record of long-term sustainable performance across a variety of metrics, which include debt, sales and earnings-per-share growth based on their most recent financial results.

“Geopolitical and inflationary headwinds sapped momentum from some Asia-Pacific economies, but strong domestic demand, supported by an uptick in infrastructure spending and global trade, powered the region’s overall growth in 2023. Our annual Best Under A Billion list of 200 small and midsized publicly traded companies, with sales under $1 billion (about P57.5 billion at current exchange rates), bears testimony to that economic resilience,” Forbes noted.

Retail network

The SSI was among the 54 “returnees” from the previous year after raking in $489 million (P28.12 billion) in sales during the tracking period.

That gave SSI a net income of $45 million (P2.6 billion) and market value of $192 million (P11 billion) based on data compiled by Forbes.

SSI Group was founded in 1987 and manages a network of retail stores offering a wide range of goods from luxury to fashion, home decor, beauty and personal care products. The company currently operates 534 stores in malls across the Philippines.

The specialty retail firm earlier said it continued to see postpandemic recovery of global clothing brands that it operates locally, among them Lacoste, Gap and Old Navy.

PBCom, a commercial bank established in 1939 and headquartered in Makati City, netted $34 million (P1.95 billion) after achieving sales of $163 million (P9.37 billion), Forbes said.

The bank, valued at $118 million (P6.8 billion) based on Forbes’ data, reported healthy trading and foreign exchange gains last year amid inflation-induced high rates.

Campus success

Lastly, Forbes said FEU posted a bottom-line of $33 million (P1.9 billion) during the tracking period, thanks to sales that amounted to $88 million (P5.1 billion). The market value of the university stood at $287 million (P16.5 billion), the business magazine said.

FEU, which was established in 1928, offers various academic programs and caters to different levels of education, with FEU Manila as its main and oldest campus.

In a regulatory filing, FEU reported that educational revenues grew by 20 percent in 2023 due to an increase in student population.

Overall, Forbes said a flourishing middle class that is willing to spend on eating out and the steady return of tourists put 21 food and beverage companies on this year’s list, more than double from last year.

The rebound in consumer spending also contributed to a renewed glow in the beauty business, with nine related companies making the cut.

Meanwhile, Forbes said easing supply constraints saw the number of semiconductor firms, last year’s standout sector, fall to eight from 14.