PLDT profit falls 11% on lower noncore gains

PLDT Inc. saw its January-September bottom line fall by 11 percent to P25.1 billion from 28.1 billion. This was blamed on lower noncore gains and higher nonrecurring charges.

Even then, the company said in a statement its core net income held steady at P25.8 billion. PLDT said its equity share in Maya helped offset a lower core income from telco operations.

“In a year of market pressures and economic slowdown, we’ve managed to stand firm.  The challenge now is to stand taller—to deliver growth that reflects not only effort, but  excellence,” said Manuel Pangilinan, chair and CEO of both PLDT and Smart Communications.

Maya Innovations Inc. posted a P532-million net income in the third quarter alone. This was due to revenue growth, high-engagement savings activity and  disciplined cost management.

Maya’s deposit balances reached P57 billion at the end of September. This meant an increase of 59 percent year-on-year.

Total loan disbursements reached P187 billion since the launch of Maya Bank. It maintained a healthy portfolio quality with a gross nonperforming loan ratio of 6.3 percent.

Across the PLDT group, nine-month gross service revenues grew 3 percent to P158.9 billion.

Also, consolidated service revenues rose by 1 percent to P145.9 billion.

Growth in data and broadband continued to offset legacy declines, helping drive stable earnings and margins.

The data and broadband segments contributed P123.6 billion or 85 percent of consolidated service revenues, up from 83 percent last year.

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This indication shows a successful transition toward digital services amid the legacy declines.

A 1-percent growth in data revenues was mainly driven by a continued shift to data-driven usage among subscribers.

“PLDT remains guided by discipline and long-term value creation—principles that have seen us through every cycle,” Pangilinan said.

“As we continue working to maintain our level of profitability in 2025, our task moving forward would be to convert steadiness into progress—to act with greater speed, imagination and accountability,” he added.