D&L profit up 10%

High margin specialty products (HMSP) accounted for 58 percent of revenues while the remaining 42 percent was accounted for by commodities in January to September. (Pixabay photo)

MANILA— Listed food and plastics manufacturer D&L Industries Inc. reported a 10-percent increase in profit in the first nine months of 2017, driven by the aerosol business and food ingredient exports.

D&L told the local bourse its recurring net income reached PHP2.12 billion from PHP1.93 billion during the same period last year.

High margin specialty products (HMSP) accounted for 58 percent of revenues while the remaining 42 percent was accounted for by commodities in January to September.

In the third quarter alone, profit increased by 15 percent to PHP771 million on the back of earnings and volume growth.

D&L President and Chief Executive Officer Alvin Lao said the third-quarter profit indicated the company returning to normal growth after flattish growth the previous quarter due to effect of the high earnings base last year on election-related spending.

“Moving forward, we continue to see robust growth across all our segments. This will be supported by the still vibrant domestic economy, strong growth in our export sales, and our continued investments in R&D (research and development),” said Lao.

Export sales grew by 74 percent in first nine months of 2017. The contribution of exports to total sales now stands at 25 percent from just 18 percent last year, a record high for the company.

With the company’s partnerships with Ventura and Bunge maintaining pace, the food ingredients segment is now the biggest contributor to exports. The segment shared 45 percent to total export sales from 19 percent last year.

The food ingredients segment grew its earnings by 7 percent in the first nine months of the year.

Chemrez booked a 12-percent increase in earnings during the period despite weakness in the biodiesel business.

D&L said the specialty plastics group posted 7-percent earnings growth in the first nine months of the year, as the weakness in engineered polymers was offset by the growth in the colorants and additives segment.

Aerosols remains the fastest growing segment of the company, posting 26-percent earnings growth in January to September. The group now shares 7 percent to D&L’s overall consolidated income compared with 3 percent five years ago.