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By Likha C. Cuevas, Reporter
BENPRES Holdings Corp., the
flagship of the Lopez group of companies, reported that its profits
last year grew almost six times as its units posted financial gains.
Its net income, mainly equity in
the earnings of subsidiaries and affiliates, reached P4.213 billion,
or 475 percent more than the amount posted in 2005, the company said
in a statement.
This growth was mainly due to the
79-percent increase in the equity earnings of affiliates at P4.59
billion to include gains by First Philippine Holdings Corp. (FPHC)
from the maiden public share-sale of First Gen Corp. last year. The
favorable ruling of the Supreme Court on Manila Electric Co.’s (Meralco)
tariff unbundling case also contributed to the higher net earnings.
FPHC’s net income grew by 77
percent to P8.70 billion on the back of its P2.653-billion gain from
the sale of part of its stake in First Gen. Meralco reported a net
income of P13.88 billion, a turnaround from the net loss of P207
million in 2005.
“Without these gains recorded
by FPHC, Benpres’s net income attributable to equity holders of
the parent would have been P2.2 billion,” the company said.
ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. saw
its net income rise by 194 percent to P741 million, as the company
controlled costs and kept lower interest-bearing debt.
Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC)
reported a net operating income of P2.023, or a growth of 2.3
percent, while Bayan Telecommunications turned around from a
P541-million loss in 2005 to P974 million in net earnings last year.
SkyCable trimmed its losses to
less than half of budget, after the renegotiation of programming
costs reduced monthly operating expenses by 25 percent, while
monthly collections grew by 20 percent.
Rockwell Land posted a net income
growth of 28 percent to P368.8 million on the back of higher
consolidated revenues at P2.9 billion, mainly due to higher revenues
recognized from condominium sales that grew 23 percent to P1.834
billion. Retail revenues grew 6 percent due to higher rental and car
park revenues.
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