Belle hikes2016 profit

MANILA, Philippines -  Leisure property developer Belle Corp. said its consolidated net income rose 74 percent to P3.1 billion in 2016 from P1.8 billion the previous year.

In a statement, Belle said excluding extraordinary items, principally a capital gain of P352 million on the sale of 26 million shares of SM Prime Holdings in July 2016, its recurring income of P2.1 billion last year was 55 percent more than the P1.3-billion  recurring income for 2015.

Due to the company’s strong profitability, it declared a regular cash dividend of nine-and-a-half centavos (P0.095) per share to its common shareholders on Feb. 28.  This equates to a total dividend payment of approximately P1 billion payable on March 30 to shareholders of record as of March 14. 

The company’s operating growth in 2016 was fueled primarily by growth in its revenues from City of Dreams Manila.  Its share in the gaming income of City of Dreams Manila, through its 78.7 percent-owned subsidiary, Premium Leisure Corp. (PLC), more than doubled to  P1.6 billion in 2016 from P756 million in 2015. This was attributable to the ramp-up in gaming operations at City of Dreams Manila, which held its grand opening in February 2015. PLC has an operating agreement with Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. (MCE) that accords it a share of gaming revenues or earnings at City of Dreams Manila. 

Belle also realized higher revenues from its real estate businesses. Total real estate-related revenues increased three percent from P2.69 billion in 2015 to P2.78 billion in 2016.  Of its 2016 revenues, P2.19 billion were derived from its lease of the land and buildings comprising City of Dreams Manila to MCE, with the balance of P586 million coming from sales of real estate products and property management activities at its Tagaytay Highlands and Midlands residential and leisure complexes south of Metro Manila.

Belle’s principal assets include land and buildings located at Pagcor Entertainment City in Parañaque City, which are being leased on a long-term basis to MCE.