Phinma profits rise 40% to P207 in in Jan-Sept

MANILA, Philippines - The improved performance of all major operating units of listed holding firm Phinma Corp. significantly jacked up the company’s profits in January to September.

Phinma’s net income spiked roughly 40 percent to P207.21 million from P148.96 million while core earnings that discount non-recurring gains or losses more than doubled to P245.5 million from P106.5 million.

In the nine-month period, revenues of the company picked up 9.25 percent to P3.66 billion from P3.35 billion.

Top income contributor was Trans-Asia Oil and Energy Development Corp. that continued to post positive operating results.

“Equitized income from Trans-Asia amounted to P124.3 million, up 27 percent from last year’s equitized income of P97.5 million, on the back of increased income from its electricity supply business,” Phinma said.

Last year, Trans-Asia raised around P2 billion through a stock rights offering. Proceeds of the fundraising will fund the 54-megawatt (MW) wind energy project in San Lorenzo, Guimaras and the planned second 135-MW unit of a coal-fired power plant in Calaca, Batangas in partnership with Ayala Corp.

Phinma Education Network (PEN) grew its earnings by half to P108.6 million from P72.9 million “driven mainly by an increase in overall enrolment,” Phinma said.

In the first semester of the school year, enrollment rose 18 percent to 31,1612 students from 26,816 students last year. PEN is composed of Araullo University, Cagayan de Oro College, University of Pangasinan and University of Iloilo. It recently expanded Cagayan de Oro College’s Basic Education Department and established a new Araullo University campus located in the southern district in Cabanatuan.