Belle sustains income growth

Leisure property developer Belle Corp. sustained the growth in its net income as profits amounted to P93.21 million in the third quarter this year compared with the P53.64-million net loss incurred in the same quarter last year.

Belle attributed the turnaround in its financial performance to net capital gains from the spin-off and sale of its majority interest in Highlands Prime Inc., amounting to P1.4 billion.

The company raised about P2.8 billion in gross proceeds from the sale of Highlands shares through an initial public offering in late April this year. Bulk of the proceeds went to service debt obligations and finance capital expenditures.

Consolidated net revenues also rose to P83.39 million from July to September this year from P63.22 million last year. These came from new sale of residential properties and club memberships.

Belle said the improved income and revenues were also due to lower depreciation and amortization charges.

From an operating loss of P26.9 million last year, Belle registered an operating income of P10.8 million. Other income amounted to P82.41 million compared with only P26.74 million.

Belle said it implemented a retrenchment program which resulted in the reduction of its permanent employee headcount by about 40.6 percent from 286 as of end-December 2001 to 170 as of Sept. 30 this year.

The company expects this to significantly enhance its operating flexibility and ability to withstand future recessionary conditions.

While it generates sufficient cash flow to sustain its operating needs, the company is still seeking to ease its heavy debt service burden which has been made more difficult by the continued weakness of the peso and the delay in the entry of foreign capital.

Belle is the owner-developer of high-end resort projects Tagaytay Highlands, Tagaytay Midlands, residential subdivision projects Lakeview Heights and Woodlands and condominium building Belle Bay Plaza.

Aside from Highlands, its other subsidiaries/investee companies include Sinophil Corp. and the APC Group Inc., Belle’s biggest non-property investment which controls the debt-saddled telecom firm Philippine Global Communications. – Zinnia dela Peña