Axelum Resources Corp. posted a 12.3% decline in net income to P180.16 million for the third quarter despite the strong sales of its coconut water and coconut milk powder products.
In a disclosure to the stock exchange on Friday, the exporter of coconut-based products said its sales for the quarter rose 4% to P1.37 billion, largely benefitting from high global market demand.
For a nine month period, the company said its net income fell 37.1% to P383.1 million, while its sales amounted to P3.75 billion.
Axelum’s coconut water volumes rose 14% due to higher retail consumption, while its coconut milk powder volumes jumped 5% after posting higher orders for food and non-food commercial applications.
The company said that coconut water and coconut milk powder account for 43% of its total revenues.
Axelum Resources Corp. President and Chief Operating Officer Henry J. Raperoga said the company’s performance showed that it has regained its growth trajectory.
Further, the company said that it was able to post growth in the third quarter despite being more cautious in booking desiccated coconut orders as it wanted to ensure that it could still deliver to key clients amid disruptions to operations due to the pandemic.
“Through the years, the Axelum brand has been built on product quality and reliability. As such, we had to ensure we were able to fulfill our commitments even if this meant sacrificing short- term volume,” Mr. Raperoga said.
For the rest of the year, the company said it expects to meet higher order volumes of coconut water from its client, Vita Coco.
Axelum is also finalizing its plant-related food expansion projects such as more assembly lines for new product variants, as part of its growth plans for 2021.
“We are confident of sustaining this momentum into the Christmas season where consumption is historically at its peak. Altogether, we believe that Axelum is headed in the right direction,” Mr. Raperoga said.
On Friday, shares in Axelum Resources in the stock exchange increased 0.68% or P0.02 to close at P2.97 each. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave
