Chemrez approves P119-million cash dividends

MANILA, Philippines – Chemrez Technologies Inc., the country’s top biodiesel, resins and oleochemicals producer, has approved the grant of cash dividends worth about P119 million.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange yesterday, ChemrezTech said it will give out a regular cash dividend of six centavos per share and a special cash dividend of three centavos per share to stockholders.

The cash dividend package is equivalent to 32 percent of the company’s net income of P372 million in 2008. All stockholders of record as of July 6, 2009 are entitled to receive the cash dividends, payable on July 30.

“This is the company’s way of sharing the profits from its operations with its shareholders. While we do not have a set dividend policy, ChemrezTech will endeavor to pay dividends whenever it is making money,” ChemrezTech chief finance officer Alvin Lao said.

ChemrezTech has consistently been declaring cash and stock dividends since 2001. Last year, its dividend payout ratio amounted to 33 percent based on the P0.275 weighted earnings per share.

Lao noted that this year’s payout reflects the full year impact of ChemrezTech’s substantial entry into the wholesale biodiesel market after the passage of the Biofuels Act in 2007.

ChemrezTech earlier reported a 37.2-percent jump in net income for the first quarter of 2009 to P131.7 million on account of higher oleochemical and biodiesel sales and improving margins.

The chemicals firm said net profit margin improved to 11.4 percent in the first quarter of 2009 from nine percent in 2008.

With the company’s share buyback, the corresponding adjusted earnings per share for the first three months of 2009 was 10 centavos as against seven centavos for the same period in 2008, representing a 42.9- percent increase.

Consolidated revenues for the first three months of 2009 reached P1.15 billion, up 7.7 percent from P1.07 billion in 2008.

The bulk of revenue growth was in the domestic market, primarily due to the sizable volume contributed by coco-biodiesel sales driven by the step-up in local requirements after the national mandate for biodiesel blend was increased from one percent to two percent last Feb. 6.

However, the gains from the strong volume growth for coco-biodiesel was partially dampened by softer pricing on account of much lower coconut feedstock costs and a more intensely competitive market environment.