Century Pacific Food grows H1 profit by 7%

MANILA, Philippines — Century Pacific Food Inc. (CNPF), the Po family’s listed canned food company and leading exporter of original equipment manufacturer (OEM) tuna and coconut products, grew its first half net income by seven percent to P1.6 billion.

In the second quarter alone, CNPF posted a net income of P838.9 million, up four percent from the previous year.

CNPF chief finance officer Oscar Pobre said the company expects cost pressures to continue.

“We are delighted to have had our profitability metrics stabilize over the last few quarters, with select input prices improving from the latter part of 2017. That said, we continue to see rising costs in other parts of our business, including certain raw materials and things like packaging, freight, and other expenses that may cause margin pressure and temper earnings growth,” he said.

The company’s consolidated revenues rose 20 percent on the back of strong topline growth from its branded segment.

Revenues reached P19.3 billion, with the branded business accounting for 75 percent or P14.4 billion. This represents an increase of 25 percent year on year on favorable economic conditions, which supported demand for the company’s products.

“We saw branded sales surge during the first half as we hit records in terms of volumes sold and distribution outlets reached. We believe local macroeconomic factors have favored demand for our products, which have wide appeal and reach a broad consumer base.

We are likewise seeing sustained brand affinity as a result of our marketing efforts, and reaping the fruits of improvements in our distribution network made over the last 12 to 18 months,” he said.

Each branded segment – marine, meat, and milk – sustained double-digit increases and contributing significantly to growth.

Revenues from the OEM export business were also up nine percent to P4.9 billion.

Moving forward, Pobre said the company may see muted growth given the challenges of rising costs.

“We are hopeful the robust sales numbers will continue, but expect more muted year-on-year increases from here as we face higher revenue comparable periods moving forward. We are also watchful as competition intensifies, though we remain positive that our market leadership and growth prospects in emerging categories will help mitigate the effects,” added Pobre.