PAGCOR tops SEC’s profitable firms in ’02

The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) topped the Securities and Exchange Commission’s list of the most profitable companies in the country last year with a record-breaking net income of P11 billion.

The gaming firm, which made it as the only government-owned and controlled corporation in the top 10, accomplished the feat despite the economic slump that slowed down business in the Asian region and the rest of the world as well.

Under the leadership of its chairman and CEO Efraim Genuino, Pagcor was able to improve its profitability from the average growth rate of 13.6 percent over a 10-year period to a new record annual growth of 17.6 percent since 2000, the company said in a statement.

From a gross income of P14.61 billion in 2000, Pagcor pushed its profits up to P17.45 billion in 2001 and P20.21 billion last year.

In the first half of 2003, Pagcor earned P5.05 billion, a laudable record for a company which was one of those affected by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) scare.

It said while most countries with casino gaming suffered losses of up to 40 percent, Pagcor kept its shortfall to a minimum at less than five percent through the stringent cost-cutting measures put in place in its gaming and non-gaming operations.

With the lifting of the SARS alert, Pagcor said it is poised toward achieving its annual income target of P20.7 billion this year.

Pagcor derives the bulk of its income from its casinos located in strategic locations around the country. A substantial portion of its profits are also generated from its stand-alone slot machine outlets, bingo parlors and table games.

The company has currently 13 casinos in operations: Silahis, Pavilion, Heritage, Paranaque, Angeles, Mimosa, Olongapo, Cebu, Mactan, Laoag, Davao, Bacolod and Tagaytay.