GGRAsia – Belle Corp profit falls 15pct in 3Q on soaring costs

Belle Corp profit falls 15pct in 3Q on soaring costs

Nov 06, 2017 Newsdesk Latest News, Philippines, Top of the deck

Net profit at Philippine conglomerate Belle Corp fell 15 percent year-on-year in the third quarter, on revenue that actually rose 31.2 percent.

Belle Corp receives a share of the gaming income at City of Dreams Manila (pictured) – a casino property operated by a unit of Asian gaming firm Melco Resorts and Entertainment Ltd – via Belle’s 78.7-percent owned subsidiary, Premium Leisure Corp.

Belle Corp’s net profit for the three months to September 30 was PHP715.57 million (US$13.9 million), compared to PHP841.82 million in the prior-year quarter. Total third-quarter revenue was PHP2.097 billion, compared to PHP1.598 billion a year earlier.

The cost to the group of gaming operations fell 80.8 percent year-on-year in the third quarter. Such costs were PHP12.10 million, compared to PHP62.92 million in the prior-year period.

But total costs and expenses for the quarter rose 76.9 percent year-on-year, to PHP948.15 million, from PHP538.96 million in the prior-year period. General and administrative expenses jumped 314.6 percent in the third quarter, to PHP471.89 million, from PHP113.82 million in the prior-year period.

Belle Corp’s net profit for the first nine months of the year rose 37.1 percent, to PHP2.172 billion, compared to PHP1.585 billion a year earlier.

Basic earnings per share rose 34.8 percent in the first nine months, to PHP0.31, compared to PHP0.23 in the prior-year period.

Third-quarter net income at Premium Leisure rose 57.4 percent, to approximately PHP427.8 million, the latter firm reported in October.