ALI Q1 net income up 39% to P6.3B
Healthy property demand and consumer activity boosted Ayala Land Inc.’s net income by 39 percent to P6.3 billion in the first quarter of the year. Consolidated revenues similarly rose by 33 percent to P41 billion in the same period.
“Our first quarter performance reflects our commitment to delivering on our operational targets this year, focused on high-value market opportunities and our drive for quality,” said ALI president and CEO Anna Ma. Margarita Bautista-Dy.
“Anchored on the resiliency of the local property market and consumer activity, we look forward to executing our plans to support our growth aspiration for 2024,” she added.
Robust performance
Property development revenues grew by 47 percent to P25 billion, driven by robust residential and commercial lot bookings. Residential revenues surged by 51 percent to P21.4 billion, while revenues from commercial and industrial lots jumped 59 percent to P2.8 billion. However, office-for-sale revenues fell by 26 percent to P826 million as the lower incremental percentage of project completions offset the sales bookings during the quarter.
Residential reservation sales meanwhile totaled P33.3 billion, 20 percent higher than the first quarter of 2023 and 19 percent more than the previous quarter, led by the strong demand for products in the premium and vertical segments. The quarter’s sales performance translated to a monthly sales average of P11.1 billion—up from the P9.5 billion recorded in 2023.
AyalaLand Premier’s (ALP) Park Villas in Makati CBD and The Courtyards Phase 3 in Vermosa; Alveo’s Park East Place in Bonifacio Global City (BGC), and Sereneo in Nuvali; and Avida’s Verge Tower 1 in Mandaluyong drove the sales performance during the period.
Project launches
Ayala Land launched four projects in the first quarter of 2024 valued at P13.7 billion. These include horizontal developments such as Alveo’s Sereneo in Nuvali, Laguna and Caleia in Vermosa, Cavite, as well as Amaia’s Scapes Rizal Sector 2B and Scapes San Fernando Sector 2 in Pampanga.
Meanwhile, leasing and hospitality revenues rose by 8 percent to P10.9 billion, owing to higher mall occupancy, increased mall, office and hotel rental rates, and the contribution of new Seda hotel rooms at Manila Bay and Nuvali. Shopping center revenues also grew by 9 percent to P5.5 billion, while office leasing improved by 5 percent to P3.1 billion. Furthermore, hotel and resort revenues accelerated by 8 percent to P2.3 billion.
Service businesses composed of construction, property management, and airline, among others, registered a 42 percent growth to P4.2 billion. Makati Development Corp.’s net construction revenues reached P2.6 billion, a 75 percent surge on account of additional contracts from external projects. Property management, AirSWIFT, and retail electricity supply companies generated revenues of P1.5 billion, a 7 percent increase year-on-year, mainly from higher parking and airline passenger revenues.
Capex, debt portfolio
Capital expenditures totaled P18.8 billion, wherein 49 percent was spent on residential projects, 30 percent for estate development, 9 percent for land acquisition, 11 percent for commercial leasing projects, and 1 percent for other purposes. ALI has a well-managed debt portfolio with an average maturity of 4.1 years at the end of the quarter, 91 percent contracted into long-term tenors, and 75 percent locked-in fixed rates. The net gearing ratio stands at 0.74:1, while the interest coverage ratio is 4.6x.
On March 5, Ayala Land declared dividends of P0.205 per share to stockholders, equivalent to P3.1 billion. Combined with P2.6 billion in share buybacks as of end April, the company has effectively returned P5.7 billion in capital to shareholders, equivalent to 23 percent of its P24.5 billion net income in 2023.