LT Group Inc., the listed holding company of tycoon Lucio Tan, said first-quarter net income barely moved at P2.25 billion from P2.23 billion in the same period last year on lower contribution from its beer business.
LT Group said in a disclosure to the stock exchange the tobacco business contributed P1 billion or 45 percent of total attributable income, followed by Philippine National Bank with P699 million or 31 percent.
Liquor units Tanduay Distillers Inc. and Asia Brewery Inc. accounted for P207 million and P151 million, respectively while property unit Eton Properties Philippines Inc. provided P75 million.
Equity net earnings from the group’s 30.17-percent stake in Victorias Milling Company Inc. amounted to P116 million.
LT Group said its balance sheet remained strong at P3.84 billion as of end-March.
The conglomerate said the tobacco business generated an income of P1 billion in January to March, up by 5 percent from a year ago, led by higher selling prices. The price of the group’s leading cigarette brand Marlboro increased to P3.50 per stick from P3.
Banking unit PNB saw its net income rise 51 percent in the first quarter to P1.27 billion as net interest income grew 11 percent to P5.15 billion, on the back of a 19-percent growth in loans and receivables.
Tanduay Distillers also posted a significant increase in net income to P207 million from P82 million in 2016 as liquor sales volume surged 40 percent.
Net income of Asia Brewery declined 57 percent to P151 million in the first quarter as the company stopped consolidating the beer and alcopop business as the latter was transferred to AB Heineken Philippines Inc.
Eton Properties reported earnings of P75 million in the first quarter, up by 21 percent from P62 million generated in the first quarter of 2016.