GGRAsia – Gaming investor Belle Corp sees 2019 profit down 9pct

Gaming investor Belle Corp sees 2019 profit down 9pct

Feb 28, 2020 Newsdesk Latest News, Philippines, Top of the deck

Philippine conglomerate Belle Corp reported on Friday full-year 2019 consolidated profit down 9 percent in year-on-year terms. Such profit for the 12 months last year was PHP2.92 billion (US$57.3 million), compared to PHP3.23 billion in 2018.

The company reported full-year revenue of PHP7.47 billion, 12 percent less than in the previous year, according to a filing to the Philippine Stock Exchange.

The parent company said additionally that it was able to cut its costs and expenses by 16 percent year-on-year, to PHP3.34 billion in 2019.

Belle Corp said the firm’s “primary growth driver” – its share of “gaming revenues” at City of Dreams Manila – “remains resilient,” despite a decline in 2019. Belle Corp is entitled – via its majority holding in Premium Leisure Corp – to a share of gaming revenues at City of Dreams Manila, a Manila casino complex operated by a unit of international casino developer Melco Resorts and Entertainment Ltd.

Premium Leisure recorded PHP2.98 billion as share of gaming revenue from City of Dreams Manila in 2019, down 7 percent compared to PHP3.21 billion in the previous year, according to Friday’s filing.

Belle Corp also leases the land where the City of Dreams Manila complex is located. The company recorded PHP2.67 billion in revenue from the lease of the land and buildings comprising City of Dreams Manila, up 12 percent from 2018.

In Friday’s statement, Belle Corp said the group’s overall operating performance was “affected by weaker results” at Pacific Online Systems Corp. The entity leases online betting equipment to the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office for the latter’s lottery and keno operations.

Belle Corp’s revenue from equipment rental and instant scratch ticket sales via Pacific Online Systems plummeted 49 percent. Such revenue was PHP990 million last year, compared to PHP1.93 billion in 2018.

In late July, the Philippine government said it was placing a ban on all lottery gambling business done under the auspices of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office due to allegations of corruption in the government agency. A few days later Philippine leader President Rodrigo Duterte lifted the ban. Belle Corp said on Friday that its unit was currently working to implement cost efficiency measures across its operations.