RAZON-LED Bloomberry Resorts Corp. is looking to expand its investments in the future after the value of its shares at the stock exchange dropped since the implementation of a Luzon lockdown.
In a statement on Tuesday, the listed operator of Solaire Resort & Casino said it wanted to “make additional future investments in the interest of enhancing shareholder value.”
These investments, it said, will consider a “broader universe of possible opportunities,” including gaming, hospitality and non-gaming assets. But Bloomberry noted there are no particular deals at the moment.
“At this time, the company does not have any particular investments or acquisitions that are under imminent consideration and therefore will not make any investment-related announcements in the near-term,” it said.
“The company will consider various opportunities in light of their potential to create additional value for shareholders,” it added.
Shares in Bloomberry at the stock exchange were priced at P8.02 each at the beginning of March. When the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis broke, which eventually led to the declaration of an enhanced community quarantine in Luzon on March 17, Bloomberry shares fell to a closing price of P4.36 apiece on March 19.
Shares in Bloomberry on Tuesday stood at P6 apiece, up 22 centavos or 3.81% from a day ago.
Gaming in casinos is among those ordered to stop operations in light of the Luzon lockdown. Bloomberry’s Solaire Resort & Casino has closed its gaming floor since March 16 in compliance with orders from regulator Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.
Gaming revenues made up P38.47 billion of Bloomberry’s consolidated revenues of P46.34 billion in 2019. Its net income grew 38% to P9.96 billion the same year.
At present, Bloomberry’s expansion in the Philippines is through the establishment of its second integrated resort in Quezon City: Solaire North. The 40-storey building located in a 1.5-hectare property within Vertis North aims to capture the gaming market in the city and the nearby provinces of Bulacan and Pampanga.
Bloomberry also owns and operates Jeju Sun Hotel & Casino in South Korea. — Denise A. Valdez
