Investing Stocks in Philippines

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Stock News 2012: Robinsons The Sapphire Bloc

Sjsu swimming pool (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Investments made on gemstones are often considered a wise and promising venture. The same highly regarded quality is mirrored in the latest condominium development of Robinsons Land Corp., the Sapphire Bloc.

Strategically located in the center of Ortigas District, the four-tower residential and commercial development, sits on a 8,421-sqm property bounded by Sapphire, Garnet and Onyx Roads. It is envisioned to become the newest stand-out leisure destination in the area, as the new project will be offering a comfortable and convenient lifestyle through its well-designed residential towers and a unique commercial lifestyle bloc component on its ground floor.

“Robinsons Land Corporation aims to set the new standard in residential developments in its home, the Ortigas CBD. With this in mind, The Sapphire Bloc will be Ortigas’ biggest lifestyle bloc,” said Mybelle Aragon-GoBio, VP for Business Development and Financing.

The end goal, simply put, is to satisfy the discerning needs and wants of the active and career-oriented individuals, whose lifestyles demand the convenience of owning an abode at the heart of the city.

“Being located within a pedestrian-friendly Ortigas CBD, we are promoting the ‘walkable lifestyle’. The Sapphire Bloc will be a walkable destination where one can find gourmet restaurants, dessert bars and coffee shops. It will also offer services and shops that will provide a holistic approach to wellness to its customers. Its Lifestyle Bloc will showcase a one-of-a-kind retail mix that will make it a premium investment,” Ms. Aragon-GoBio said.

“Through the art-deco inspired project, Robinsons Land Corporation gives value to your money by giving you efficient-designed living spaces and various amenity offerings the feel of the authentic lifestyle offered by its retail component,” she added.

Among these top-notch amenities that will guarantee comfort are function rooms, private theater, game room, fitness/gym, adult swimming pool, kiddie pool, pool deck, massage/sauna rooms, lawn, children’s playground, gazebo, viewing deck and landscaped areas.

Rising 38 stories high, The Sapphire Bloc will have a total of 414 units with cuts ranging from 30 sqm to 37.3 sqm for a one-bedroom unit (priced between P3 million and P4.08 million); 45.5 sqm to 60 sqm for a two-bedroom unit (P4.9 million to P6.6 million); and 97 sqm for a three-bedroom unit (P10.42 million to P10.6 million).

http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/382179/robinsons-presents-the-sapphire-bloc#.UMJMHeSmj3w

Monday, December 10, 2012

Stock News 2012: Biggest US Health Insurer Sets Up Back Office In Taguig

English: Bonifacio High Street at Taguig City, Philippines (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

America’s largest health insurer, UnitedHealth Group Inc., has set up a back office in Philippines to provide offshore critical business support services.

“We welcome UnitedHealth’s decision to transfer to Manila various labor-intensive, information technology-enabled business support functions,” said House Deputy Majority Leader Roman Romulo, a key backer of the booming business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the Philippines.

“This is yet another strong vote of confidence in Philippines coming no less from a major American corporation in the US Dow Jones 30 (stock market index),” Romulo said.

Romulo said UnitedHealth, ranked No. 22 in the Fortune 500 largest US corporations by gross revenue, has began hiring Philippine staff, including Filipino registered nurses with hospital experience, BPO exposure, and who have active US licenses.

The nurses are being signed up to perform Philippine-based jobs as “nurse associates, clinical quality analysts and clinical managers.”

Romulo said UnitedHealth is also recruiting medical billing coordinators, medical coding specialists, healthcare experts, and customer service associates with BPO experience in a financial account or in handling human resource processes.

UnitedHealth’s move to relegate several business support activities to a new in-house center at the McKinley Hill Cyberpark in Taguig City came not long after Romulo predicted that a new US law enabling more Americans to obtain health insurance would boost the BPO sector in the Philippines.

In October, Romulo had expressed confidence that Obamacare would drive new demand for health insurance-related business support services in Manila.

http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/385111/biggest-us-health-insurer-sets-up-back-office-in-taguig#.UMJK7uSmj3w

Friday, November 30, 2012

Stock News 2012: Banks’ NPL Ratio Improves Further To 2.05% In Third Quarter

English: Central Bank of the Philippines (Main) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) yesterday reported that the 37 major banks’ non-performing loans (NPL) ratio improved to 2.05 percent as of the end of the third quarter as soured loans continue to decline.

BSP’s latest data showed that NPL ratio as of end-September was 0.03 percentage point lower compared to end-August and by 0.41 percentage point lower than last year’s 2.46 percent. Net of interbank loans, the NPL ratio was lower by 0.03 percentage point to 2.15 percent.

Borrowers or debtors with unpaid loans for 30 days are considered NPL accounts while unpaid loans of more than 90 days will generally be considered in default.

The central bank in October revised the rules on banks’ NPL by including the net amount of NPLs as a “complementary measure” to gross NPLs. Net NPLs are gross NPLs less specific allowance for credit losses on the total loan portfolio.

In the first nine months of the year, the 37 universal/commercial banks have reported R69.94 billion-worth of borrowers’ past due loans. This is lower than August’s R70.43 billion and the same period in 2011 of R74.33 billion.

The big banks’ total loan portfolio, in the meantime, increased to R3.41 trillion from R3.378 trillion in the previous month and R3 trillion last year.

The BSP said NPL ratio improved because of the 0.69 percent reduction in total bad loans and the 0.96 percent expansion in total loan portfolio.

“The industry’s provisioning against potential credit losses remained adequate,” stated the BSP.

The NPL coverage ratio or loan loss reserves to NPLs strengthened to 136 percent from 135.81 percent in August and from last year’s 123.70 percent ratio.

The coverage ratio for non-performing assets (NPA) narrowed to 69.39 percent from 69.44 percent in August but it was higher compared to last year’s 62.68 percent ratio. As of end-September, the big banks’ NPAs declined to R176.34 billion from R177.12 billion in the previous month and R191.06 billion the same period in 2011.

NPAs are computed including NPL and real and other properties and acquired or ROPA

The banks’ restructured loans, on the other hand, totaled R35.5 billion, hardly changed on a monthly basis but considerably lower compared to last year’s R40.98 billion.

http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/383808/banks-npl-ratio-improves-further-to-205-in-third-quarter#.T8GjbOSmj3w

Monday, November 26, 2012

Stock News 2012: Stumbling block to banking deal of the decade

Philippine National Bank (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

While Bank of the Philippine Islands has entered an advanced stage of negotiations to acquire a controlling stake in Philippine National Bank, the prospective banking deal of the decade seems to have encountered a major stumbling block—getting the imprimatur of taipan Lucio Tan.

The “Kapitan” may have started estate planning and chosen a successor, but all major deals of course have to get his final blessing, and from what we gather, he needs further convincing.

Some speculate it has something to do with a supposed tempting counter-offer from fellow taipan Henry Sy-led Banco de Oro Unibank, which will lose its bragging right as the country’s biggest bank if and when the deal is reached.

While a Chinoy versus Castilaloy banking edition battle does not seem far-fetched, BDO has officially denied to the Philippine Stock Exchange any plan for a PNB takeover. BDO chair Teresita Sy-Coson herself also told Biz Buzz: “We did not look at it.”

This is probably because a bidding war is not a plausible angle if the stumbling block is not the price at which PNB is to be valued. Several sources close to the Lucio Tan group said it has something to do with the issue of dilution or the deal structure, which will leave the LT group with a minority stake (20 percent) in a holding firm that will own 60 percent of an enlarged BPI.

“He doesn’t want a minority stake in any business,” one source said. Another source described it as a “withdrawal syndrome”—as the emperor loses power and influence.

Instead of something like a Digitel-PLDT deal, it seems that what Kapitan would have preferred was the Philippine Airlines-San Miguel or Fortune Tobacco-Philip Morris partnership deals wherein the LT group remained as an equal partner, only without management control. But in this case, even a merged PNB-Allied Bank entity is not an equal partner to BPI, the country’s most valuable bank.

http://business.inquirer.net/94959/biz-buzz-stumbling-block-to-banking-deal-of-the-decade

Sunday, November 25, 2012

Stock News: SMC, MPIC clash on road projects

The Skyway System. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Conglomerates Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) and San Miguel Corp. are on a collision course again over differing proposals on how to fund and build the shared portion of two north-to-south connector roads.

San Miguel-led Citra Metro Manila Tollways Corp. said it planned to build the shared Metro Manila Skyway extension from Buendia to the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) on its own and just get a reimbursement from MPIC after construction has been completed.

“I think our proposal is fair and makes the most sense. Everybody wins,” Citra president and CEO Shadik Wahono said at a press conference. “If we pay 50 percent of the cost, but receive less than 50 percent of the traffic, then it will be a negative investment on our part,” he said.

He said both firms would end up splitting the cost of construction of the shared road, with their respective contributions being determined by how much traffic they would separately bring in.

Worth an estimated P7 billion, the 5-kilometer extension will be shared by both Citra and MPIC, which both have approved proposals to construct roads on separate alignments that aim to connect the Skyway with the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx).

Both proposed roads, named the “connector road” for MPIC and Skyway Phase 3 for Citra, will start at the end of the shared portion before veering off in different directions to their respective alignments.

MPIC holds the concession to NLEx while Citra controls the Skyway.

“If more of the cars go to their connector, then they will have to pay a bigger portion of the bill. Conversely, if they have fewer cars, then their share will be smaller,” Wahono said. “The same goes with us.”

As with the cost of construction, Wahono said Citra’s proposal to the government also indicated that revenues from toll to be collected from motorists should be split between the two companies based on the share of traffic.

MPIC, chaired by Manuel V. Pangilinan, disagreed with Citra’s proposal, adding that the shared portion of both connectors should be built under a 50-50 joint venture.

“What we want is to be treated as a co-equal in this project. They want to go solo and just ask for a reimbursement from us [after construction]. We won’t allow that,” said Ramoncito Fernandez, president of MPIC unit Metro Pacific Tollways Corp., the unit handling the group’s road assets.

Fernandez went as far as to accuse Citra of “bad faith” for submitting a proposal to the government while negotiations with the MPIC group were still ongoing.

In a statement, Citra said its officials met with counterparts from MPIC several times to discuss the revenue-sharing scheme. The meetings happened on September 20, October 24 and November 14.

Citra claimed that last November 20, MPIC president and CEO Jose Ma. K. Lim agreed that the new Citra offer was superior to what MPIC had originally proposed.

In the earlier meetings, Citra said MPIC acknowledged the San Miguel group’s prior rights and concession over the so-called common alignment and it accepted that Citra would construct the common segment provided MPIC would be given proper connection at PUP.

MPIC also agreed that both parties would have toll plazas after the common segment and the common segment would charge based on an “open system” or fixed tolls to avoid interoperability issues.

http://business.inquirer.net/94971/smc-mpic-clash-on-road-projects

Monday, November 19, 2012

Stock News 2012: Ayala, Rustan’s plan dep’t store chain

Shangri-La Plaza (Photo credit: Brian Sahagun)

Ayala Land Inc. will soon debut into the department store retailing format in partnership with the Rustan’s group by investing in the anchor tenant of a new Ayala shopping center rising in Fairview, Quezon City.

This will implement an earlier announced equal joint venture with the Tantoco family’s Specialty Investments Inc. (SII) to “pursue opportunities in the Philippine retail sector.”

ALI and Rustan’s are likewise investing in the 24-hour convenience store business under Japanese retailing chain FamilyMart, the world’s second-largest convenience store operator.

Although a late entrant in the high-volume but low-margin retailing business in department store and convenience store businesses, ALI is confident that having Rustan’s as a partner would create a “formidable” alliance that could effectively compete in this segment, said ALI chief finance officer Jaime Ysmael.

In a talk with reporters at the sidelines of the Securities and Exchange Commission hearing on foreign capital computation, Ysmael said ALI was now developing a new mall—Fairview Terraces—whose anchor tenant would be a department store co-owned by the Ayala-Rustan’s partnership. Typically, he said the anchor tenants in Ayala’s shopping centers would occupy about 10,000 square meters of retail space like Landmark (in Glorietta and Trinoma) or Gaisano (in Market!Market!).

“We haven’t come up with the name yet,’ Ysmael said, when asked what would be the branding for the upcoming Ayala-Rustan’s department stores. “Close to opening, that should be available,” he said. Parkview Terraces is expected to open by the end of next year.

This would not mean that ALI would no longer provide retail space to other department store operators in other upcoming malls, Ysmael said. “We will still have that kind of relationship with existing partners. It’s just that we want to put up our own so that we can move faster than that we’ll be able to do if we don’t have our own department stores. But those (other) stores will continue. They are longtime partners,” he said.

Ysmael said Rustan’s, apart from being the dominant retailer for the high-end segment, had a vast experience in the broader consumer market through its Shopwise grocery chain. “We’re confident that the partnership will be able to compete,” he said.

For the convenience store business, which is in partnership with FamilyMart and Japanese conglomerate Itochu, Ysmael said this should also be a “formidable” retail format.

The partnership is investing about P200 million to jumpstart the business. While the initial target is to set up 30 stores in the first year of operations, Ysmael said it should roll out “a couple of hundred stores to be able to make a difference.” As Ayala has hundreds of property developments across the country, Ysmael said the rollout should not be a problem.

“We’re positioning also in other areas, not just in our developments, but the priority is to locate in our developments,” he said.

http://business.inquirer.net/92476/ayala-rustans-plan-dept-store-chain

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Stock News 2012: Pepsi unit posts 208% growth in 9-month profit

Pepsi logo (2003-08). Initially, the "Pepsi" script was written across the top of the globe. In 2007 when the packaging was again redesigned, the script was moved below the globe. It was used in countries outside the US until 2010. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Beverage-maker Pepsi-Cola Products Philippines Inc. tripled its net profit in the first nine months as sales expanded even during the third quarter, when the country was hit by heavy monsoon rains.

PCPPI reported that its January-September net profit jumped by 208.3 percent year on year to P696 million. For the third quarter alone, net income grew by about 1 percent year on year to P119.33 million despite adverse seasonality factors.

“The third quarter of the year is typically a difficult period for the beverage industry due to seasonality. This year, it was further compounded by the heavy rains in July and August. Our notable achievements across brands and categories were driven by a better-than-expected performance in carbonated softdrinks, particularly in the cola segment,” PCPPI president Partho Chakrabarti said.

“With our top-line growth continuing to outperform industry growth for yet another quarter, we are poised to significantly exceed our full-year targets”, Chakrabarti said.

Gross sales, fueled by robust sales volume performance across brands and categories, grew by 6.5 percent year on year to P5.24 billion for the third quarter and by 13 percent to P16.56 billion year to date.

Due to higher sales volume, cost of sales rose by 6 percent in the third quarter and by 5 percent during the nine months to September compared to year-ago levels. However, as a percentage of net sales, cost of sales decreased by 6 percentage points during the nine-month period versus 2011 levels. This is attributed to the 27-percent drop in the average sugar price.

Cost of sales includes raw and packaging materials expenses, direct labor cost and manufacturing overhead.

The company’s gross profit reached P3.83 billion for the nine-month period, representing an increase of 42 percent compared to year-ago level.

PCPPI’s strong first half-year growth allowed the company to make strategic investments in the third quarter of the year, resulting in increases in operating expenses as a percentage of net sales by 2 percentage points for the three-month period and 1 percentage point for the nine-month period from year-ago levels.

Operating expenses—consisting of selling and distribution, general and administrative, and marketing expenses—remained at manageable levels.

http://business.inquirer.net/92406/pepsi-unit-posts-208-growth-in-9-month-profit

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