Heavy rains, high inflation pull down Wilcon profit
Wilcon Depot Inc., a listed home improvement retailer, saw a weaker bottom line in the first nine months, as heavy rains and high inflation dampened its operations last quarter.
The company said its net income as of September had declined by 6 percent year-on-year to P1.752 billion from P1.866 billion.
For the third quarter alone, its profit dropped 22 percent to P548 million.
“Macroeconomic and weather-related headwinds halted our earnings growth trajectory in Q3. The trend reversal was driven by two key factors: heavy August rains and surging inflation,” Lorraine Belo-Cincochan, president and CEO of Wilcon Depot, said in a statement on Monday.
The official said that the persistent heavy rainfall triggered by habagat had disrupted customers’ home repairs or upgrading plans, leading to a decrease in foot traffic and same-store sales during the quarter.
Costlier fuel prices as well as the weakening of the local currency against the US dollar likewise affected demand.
“We expected a sharp turnaround in September, but prevailing macroeconomic challenges limited consumer spending to repairs and basic, essential home improvement projects,” she added
Net sales, meanwhile, improved by 8 percent to P28.429 billion in the January to September period.
Wilcon Depot launched seven new stores, ending September with 111 stores.
Operating expenses rose by 8.3 percent, or by P661 million, following increases in depreciation, lease-related expenses, manpower expenses, utilities, among others.
