WG&A now known as Aboitiz Transport System Corp

The board of directors of William, Gothong and Aboitiz Inc. (WG&A) has approved the change of its corporate name to Aboitiz Transport System Corp. to reflect the majority ownership of Aboitiz group.

At the same time, the company approved the inclusion of preferred shares as among those entitled to receive the stock dividend declared by the board last Oct. 23 at the same ratio of one common share for every four preferred shares held.

To facilitate the issuance of shares to stockholders, WG&A will increase its authorized capital stock from 1.625 billion common shares with a par value of P1 per share to 3.123 billion common shares.

The additional new shares will be used by the company to finance its future expansion programs when needed.

WG&A told the Philippine Stock Exchange that the resolutions will be presented for approval by stockholders during a special meeting scheduled on Dec. 18, 2003.

The majority owned by publicly-listed Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc., WG&A has 23 vessels plying a route network of 22 ports of call. All vessels move different kinds of cargo, with containerized cargo accounting for a substantial portion of its total business.

WG&A also provides luxury passenger services to major domestic ports through its SuperFerries with Manila as homeport.

The entire SuperFerry fleet is fully certified based on the standards of the International Ship Management Code, which is recognized in the international maritime industry as the benchmark for ensuring safety at sea.

Profits of WG&A dropped by 55 percent in the first nine months of the year to P250 million from P562 million the previous year period. Operating income was also lower, falling four percent to P593 million from P616 million.

Total operating and administrative costs rose five percent to P4.74 billion compared to P4.53 billion the previous year. The increase came from higher advertising cost and vessel insurance expense.

While it saw a rise in ridership during the third quarter with a four-percent increase in volume, the company’s freight revenues slipped three percent due to a fall in cargo capacity with the loss of one of the firm’s freighters.